NHL Buzz: Draisaitl plays for Oilers against Kraken after injury

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Edmonton Oilers

Leon Draisaitl was back for the Oilers against the Seattle Kraken at Rogers Place on Tuesday.
The forward missed two games with an undisclosed injury. He was checked into an open player gate by Calgary Flames forward Elias Lindholm in the third period of a 2-1 win Dec. 27.
"He is an available player for us tonight," Edmonton coach Jay Woodcroft said. "He's a former Hart Trophy winner, a special player and somebody who brings a lot to the game and brings a lot to the team."
Draisaitl practiced with the Oilers on Monday. He did not take part in an optional morning skate Tuesday.
"I'm feeling good, I've skated the last couple of days, and I feel really good," Draisaitl said Monday. "I think I recovered pretty well, recovered pretty quick, maybe a little quicker than I thought I could. But I'm happy the way it's feeling, and we'll see how it goes from here."
Edmonton won 7-2 at Seattle on Friday without Draisaitl, then lost 2-1 to the Winnipeg Jets at home Saturday.
"How do I think we made out without him? I thought we played two hard games," Woodcroft said. "We found a way in Seattle, and we didn't get any points in the Winnipeg game, but there was lots of good in it for us."
Draisaitl has 57 points (21 goals, 36 assists), second in the NHL behind Oilers center Connor McDavid (72 points; 32 goals, 40 assists in 38 games). -- Derek Van Diest

Washington Capitals

T.J. Oshie returned for the Capitals when they hosted the Buffalo Sabres.
The forward worked on the first power-play unit at the morning skate and didn't stay on the ice with extra skaters. He was a full participant at practice Monday.
"I feel good," Oshie said. "Another road back to recovery here. I feel good. I guess I got completely out of pain around Christmas. It's been a little bit since then, so I've been able to train and condition and get back in shape, so I feel good."
Oshie missed six games with an upper-body injury he sustained during a 5-2 win against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Dec. 17. He missed 11 games from Oct. 31 to Nov. 19 with a similar injury.
Though Tom Wilson (left ACL surgery) and Nicklas Backstrom (left hip resurfacing surgery) also were full participants Monday, Laviolette said each forward needs more time before their season debuts.
Backstrom returned to practice after being in NHL COVID-19 protocol last week.
"Yeah, they're working, so they look good to me," Laviolette said. "They're really skating hard and working hard out here and so, like I said, they're moving in the right direction, trending in the right direction."-- Tom Gulitti

Columbus Blue Jackets

Patrik Laine returned for the Blue Jackets at the Ottawa Senators one day after being removed from COVID-19 protocol.
The forward took line rushes with Johnny Gaudreau and Kent Johnson at the morning skate Tuesday.
"Feeling good," Laine said. "I've been able to skate the past couple days. I've kind of been over COVID for a few days now, so I'm starting to feel actually good, but you never know until you play. But I'm hoping it'll feel good.
"Just pretty gassed for five days and just laid in bed. It went over pretty quick, though. Happy it wasn't too bad."
Laine has 16 points (nine goals, seven assists) in 20 games, 12 points (seven goals, five assists) in 12 games since returning from an ankle injury Dec. 2.
"It's been one of those seasons where I've been out more watching the games than actually playing them," Laine said. "Every time you're out, you obviously want to come back and play. Just happy to get the chance to come back. Only missed two games this time, but it felt like forever again. Just happy to be back in the lineup." -- Callum Fraser

Montreal Canadiens

David Savard returned for the Canadiens against the Nashville Predators.
The defenseman missed 13 games with an upper-body injury. He hadn't played since Dec. 3, a 5-3 loss to the Oilers.
Savard replaced defenseman Johnathan Kovacevic.
"For me, it was just [about getting] back and being healthy," Savard said. "You don't want to come back too quick and go to square one. That was one of the most important things, is just to make sure I was ready to go. And I felt comfortable being on the ice."
Montreal has lost five in a row (0-4-1) and has allowed a combined 16 goals in its past two games, a 7-2 loss to the Florida Panthers and a 9-2 loss to the Capitals.
"I think his presence in the locker room, on the bench, on the ice … he's a pro," Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis said. "Obviously he hasn't played in a while, so we'll see physically how he's at. But I expect him to lead like he always does and help us out."-- John Glennon

Toronto Maple Leafs

Rasmus Sandin returned for the Maple Leafs when they hosted the St. Louis Blues at Scotiabank Arena.
The defenseman missed four games with a neck injury sustained in a 4-1 win against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Dec. 20. He practiced Monday and was paired with Timothy Liljegren.
"Just looking for him to get back to playing the way he was," Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe said Monday. "He'd been playing really well and playing lots for us. We're getting healthy back there now, but still wanting guys to find their game again and show the progress they've made.
"In Rasmus' case before he was injured, he was taking on a lot because of the other injuries we had. Others have come in and done a job since he's been injured and that's a really good sign for our depth."
Morgan Rielly was on a pair with TJ Brodie and Mark Giordano skated with Justin Holl. Conor Timmins came out of the lineup. -- Dave McCarthy