Insider reveals Demko pushing to return early to play Oilers series

In a serious turn of events, Thatcher Demko may be available to return to the Canucks and play the Oilers in the second round.

The Canucks elite starting goaltender suffered a major injury during game one of the first round, and no news has been positive regarding his injury until now. According to Seravalli, Demko is skating and progressing faster than originally expected, and is making a concerted effort to push himself to be ready.

It was originally assumed Demko may miss the entire second round, but now a return by game 5 may be an outside chance. In a potential game 6 and 7, Demko may be available for the Canucks at full health. Being the playoffs, no real details were shared about Demko's injury, only that the injury affected his knee, and MRI results weren't encouraging.

The Oilers need to take advantage of a weakened Canucks team

With the news that Demko is on track to make a return around game 5, the early part of this series becomes all the more important for both teams.

As one of the league's most elite starting goalies, Demko has been able to mask some of the Canucks defensive lapses. Rookie Arturs Silovs has stepped in for three games with fantastic results, but there's a clear difference in ability between the two goaltenders. It will be critical for the Oilers to jump on Silovs early in the series, and put it out of reach for Demko to recover.

Despite not winning a game against the Canucks this series, the Oilers are heavy favourites for a reason. Under coach Knoblauch the Oilers have been the best team in the NHL, backed by an automatic offence. Against a rookie goaltender in the playoffs, McDavid, Draisaitl, and the rest of the Oilers offensive weapons should have a field day - they just need to execute on the opportunity.