Ekholm grateful to be healthy for Oilers in time for Stanley Cup Final

EDMONTON -- Mattias Ekholm has defied the odds and will be in the lineup for the Edmonton Oilers in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Florida Panthers at Rogers Place on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; CBC, TVAS, SN, TNT, truTV, MAX).

An undisclosed injury prevented the 35-year-old defenseman from making his debut this postseason until Game 5 of the Western Conference Final on May 29, when he had an assist in a 6-3 win against the Dallas Stars to help the Oilers advance to the Cup Final for a second straight season.

“It’s amazing,” Ekholm said on Monday. “Six weeks ago, I had no clue where I was going to be at (in terms of recovery), and most people didn’t think I was going to be in this position. So, to be able to be part of this group, to be part of things on the ice and help this team win has obviously been the goal the whole time.

“And now that it’s reality, it’s awesome for me, personally.”

Ekholm averaged 22:12 during the regular season on the Oilers’ top defense pair alongside Evan Bouchard, but he reaggravated an injury that had him in and out of the lineup since February.

In all, Ekholm missed 17 of Edmonton’s last 31 regular-season games. He initially attempted to return on April 11 against the San Jose Sharks, but Ekholm lasted two shifts and 1:52, falling twice without contact before making his way to the dressing room, heading down the hallway with his season potentially hanging in the balance.

But he returned in time to help the Oilers secure their return ticket to the Cup Final.

“His first game, he exceeded expectations,” Edmonton coach Kris Knoblauch said. “And I say that because you never know what you’re going to get from a player coming back from an injury. He had been out for weeks, and then to come in to play against Dallas, who’s a good team, in a high-paced playoff game, he looked very comfortable and made a lot of nice plays and looked a lot like what we’re accustomed to seeing ‘Eky’ play, because he’s a heck of a player and you never know if he’s going to be able to pick that up right away.

“He played almost 16 minutes that night (15:52). Can he play some more? Absolutely. Can he play 30 (minutes)? Probably not there yet. But over 20, yes.”

Ekholm will play in the Cup Final for a third time. He had 10 points (five goals, five assists) in 25 playoff games last season, when the Oilers lost in Game 7 to the Panthers. He had 11 points (one goal, 10 assists) in 22 postseason games for the Nashville Predators in 2018 when they lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

“There is a bit of experience there, and I know that a conference championship is obviously something you really want,” Ekholm said. “But it’s the big prize that we all want, and I think that’s the focus right now and we all seem to be pretty calm with that.”

Edmonton trailed 3-0 to Florida in the best-of-7 Cup Final a year ago but won the next three games to push the series to the limit. The Oilers lost 2-1 in Game 7.

Ekholm remembers how painful that was. That’s why he’s grateful to be back in time for the rematch.

“I obviously had my doubts; when doctors tell you something, they’re usually right,” Ekholm said. “But big credit goes out to everything we’ve done with it, from ownership to management, to trainers, to doctors, everybody’s helped in a big way.

“I knew there were cases that have gone quicker than the actual timeline, and that’s all that was in my head. I wanted to beat that and be back as soon as possible. And sometimes that doesn’t work out, but this time it certainly did, so I’m happy. Surprised or not, I don’t know. I think I put in the hard work, and it paid off.”