Dickinson makes long-awaited playoff return, shines for Oilers in Game 1 win

EDMONTON -- Jason Dickinson had not played a game in the Stanley Cup Playoffs since 2020, and there was some doubt whether he would be available to the Edmonton Oilers for Game 1 of the Western Conference First Round against the Anaheim Ducks.

Fortunately for the Oilers, the forward gutted it out, scoring two goals in a 4-3 win against the Ducks at Rogers Place on Monday.

Dickinson, who missed the final three games of the regular season after blocking a shot in a 5-2 win at the San Jose Sharks on April 8, scored the opening goal in the first period and the tying goal in the third to help give Edmonton a 1-0 lead in the best-of-7 series.

Game 2 is at Rogers Place on Wednesday (10 p.m. ET; CBC, SN, TVAS2, KCOP-13, TBS, Victory+, HBO MAX).

“I just had to get my strength back to me and just work towards being able to play, that was obviously the first step, being able to make sure I was strong enough to battle,” Dickinson said. “The results are because of my process; keeping it simple and go to the net and good things happen. That’s really all that was, was move my legs and let the game come to me.”

Dickinson practiced for the first time since the end of the regular season on Sunday and was considered a game-time decision for Game 1.

His first goal came at 17:21 of the first period, taking a long breakaway pass from defenseman Jake Walman and shaking the equipment off goalie Lukas Dostal before lifting the puck in the net.

Dickinson’s second came at 11:30 of the third period, banging in a rebound off a shot from defenseman Mattias Ekholm to tie the game 3-3. Kasperi Kapanen scored the other two for Edmonton, including the game-winner at 18:06.

“In my mind, there was no way I was not playing, whatever I had to do I was going to be out there,” Dickinson said. “I got a taste of it (playoffs) years ago and man this is this fun. It’s the best time of the year. You fight all year for this. I was told early on that you have to savor it because you never know if you’ll be back.

“I kind of chuckled at it early on because I thought I would be back, and then five years went by and I hadn’t seen playoffs. You want to play in these moments, you want to play in these games because it makes everything worth it, all the bumps, bruises, the training, all the hours spent away from the family, not doing the things your friends are doing because you have something you’re chasing. It’s great to be a part of it and really, it’s all about going out there and competing with these guys.”

Dickinson last played in the playoffs in 2020, getting to the Stanley Cup Final with the Dallas Stars. The following year, Dallas missed the postseason and then Dickinson went on to play with the Vancouver Canucks and Chicago Blackhawks.

The 30-year-old was on the road to missing the playoffs again this season before he was traded to the Oilers along with forward Colton Dach on March 5, for forward Andrew Mangiapane, and a conditional first-round pick in the 2027 NHL Draft.

Dickinson was the third-line center Edmonton was looking for in its quest to make it to the Stanley Cup Final for a third consecutive season. Whatever offense he can provide is a bonus.

“Your top players have to be your top players, but you’re not going anywhere if you don’t have guys like that chipping in,” said Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl, who also returned from injury Monday. “We don’t expect two goals from guys like that every night, of course, but you need that and both of them I thought played a (heck) of a game.”

For his part, Draisaitl had two assists in his first game since sustaining a lower-body injury in a 3-1 win against the Nashville Predators on March 15. He missed the final 14 games of the regular season and was also a game-time decision.

Draisaitl had an assist on both of Kapanen’s goals.

“I felt OK,” Draisaitl said. “It’s certainly going to take a couple of games to really be myself and really trust myself again. But for a start, I thought it was OK.”

Draisaitl worked hard to be ready for the opening game of the playoffs and appreciated the grind Dickinson put in to come back as well.

“It’s amazing, I think he’s been waiting to play playoff hockey for a long time now,” Draisaitl said. “It’s exciting. Guys like that are invaluable to a team. I’m really happy for him and it was obviously a great night for him.”

The Oilers may not have played their best game in the win but were grateful to take the lead in the series without captain Connor McDavid chipping in offensively.

McDavid had at least one point in each of Edmonton’s 41 wins in the regular season but was frustrated by the Ducks for most of the evening and held off the score sheet.

“Getting two goals from them in a playoff game was huge for us, especially Dickinson who hasn’t had much offense for us this year, but has been solid defensively,” Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said. “The first goal was pretty impressive, a nice goal, a breakaway with his speed. It was a great pass by Walman, so that was nice, then obviously coming up big in the third period with his next one.”