Henrique was believed to have sustained an injury to his leg in the final game against the Los Angeles Kings, and tried to push through to play one game against the Canucks, but he clearly isn't healthy. It seems Henrique is doing everything he can to return to the lineup, but his injury is too significant to allow him to play right now.
After some fans were underwhelmed by Henrique being the biggest trade acquisition of the Oilers' year, he seamlessly fit into the lineup surprisingly on the first line left wing. Henrique's presence on the first line allowed for bottom six forwards to thrive in their role, especially being ready for the penalty kill.
Knoblauch initially had trouble replacing Henrique on the first line, but has since gone back to an elite combination of Ryan Nugent-Hopkins with Connor McDavid and Zach Hyman. Corey Perry has come out of the lineup, and Sam Carrick has been brought back into the bottom six for some speed and physicality.
It's disappointing that Henrique will be unavailable to play in a massive game 7, but the Oilers have the ability to push through. Both teams have plenty of players absent and battling through injury at this point in the playoffs. It always comes down to a battle of wills and endurance, and tomorrow night, hopefully the Oilers team playoff experience and talent can push them over the line into the third round.
POLL | ||
19 MAI | 388 ANSWERS Oilers coach Knoblauch reveals Adam Henrique's status for game 7 Do you think Henrique will be able to play in the third round of the Oilers advance? | ||
Yes, Henrique will be back | 279 | 71.9 % |
No, no chance at this point | 48 | 12.4 % |
Can't definitively say | 61 | 15.7 % |
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