The entire Edmonton Oilers organization and fans were holding their breath when Connor McDavid went down with a scary-looking injury, but it seems it could be back in the lineup faster than anyone imagined.
McDavid jammed his ankle into the boards at full speed in the first shift of the Oilers game against the Columbus Blue Jackets, and was unable to return to the game. The immediate concern for McDavid was a high ankle sprain, which at a high grade could hold him out for months. Thankfully he was diagnosed with a low-grade sprain.
Since then, the timeline for McDavid has been moved up significantly already. McDavid himself came out and changed his injury status to day to day, while saying returning for the game against the Vancouver Canucks was a possibility.
Now, Oilers insider Bob Stauffer is reporting that McDavid could come back even sooner - for tomorrow night's game against the Vegas Golden Knights.
There's probably no reason for McDavid to rush back at this point, but it's incredibly encouraging that McDavid seems to be healing faster than anticipated.
It's a potential disaster situation anytime the Oilers will be without Connor McDavid, but the players seemed to use it as an opportunity to rally around each other and improve their team game. The Oilers have mostly done so in the absence of McDavid, especially with Leon Draisaitl stepping up to lead the team.
Still, it's great news that McDavid may be able to return far faster than anticipated. Hopefully he's fully healthy and back playing as soon as possible - he's currently only 8 points away from notching his 1000tg career point.
