The Edmonton Oilers’ injury picture is already looking messy before the 2026-27 season even begins, and Jason Dickinson’s status is now the latest concern.
Head coach Mike Babcock said Friday that the veteran centreman has suffered a setback with the ankle injury that bothered him during last year’s playoffs. Dickinson, 31, had been expected to play a significant role in Edmonton’s bottom-six forward group this season, but there’s now no clear timeline for his return.
Babcock didn’t offer much certainty on how long Dickinson might be out.
“I don’t really know what’s going on there. I know that he’s had a setback.
A huge part of it is that the physical part is one thing, the mental part is another. If you keep having these setbacks, it’s hard.
“It’s the same thing [from the playoffs],” Babcock told reporters. “I’m not the medical guy, so I don’t know.
It looked like we were really advancing. He tweaked it.
Thought we were coming good, [but] yesterday was a tough day. Does that last two days, does it last two weeks?
I don’t know. I’m not a doctor.”
Dickinson’s situation adds to a growing list of unavailable players in camp. Before training camp opened, GM Stan Bowman said Matt Savoie, Mattias Janmark, Alec Regula, and recently signed goaltender Frederik Andersen would all miss training camp because of injury. Those issues could carry into the regular season as well.
Dickinson was also visibly in pain when he left the ice during practice last week.
The Oilers brought him in from the Chicago Blackhawks at last season’s trade deadline. He played 17 regular season games after the deal, finishing with a goal and three assists, then chipped in two goals and three points in four playoff games.
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