Oilers' Klefbom returns from finger injury

Edmonton defenseman Oscar Klefbom will return from a broken left pinky when the Oilers host the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday. Klefbom missed 21 games due to the finger injury suffered Dec. 11 when he blocked a shot by Sven Andrighetto of the Colorado Avalanche. He underwent surgery to repair the damage.

"It's getting better every day," Klefbom said following Edmonton's morning skate on Tuesday. "It was a painful couple of months. Sitting in the press box is not something you want to do. I'm very excited to play tonight and to come back and play, and be in the locker room, and be a part of the team is something that I've been missing." The 25-year-old Klefbom resumed practicing last Thursday. He has 15 points (three goals, 12 assists) in 31 games this season, while leading the Oilers in average ice time (25:25).

The Oilers went 6-12-3 with Klefbom out of the lineup. "I want to go out there and play my game, help the guys out and hopefully contribute something on the ice that I brought in the days I was playing," Klefbom said. "There are a lot of points to play for, so I want to come back here and give a good playoff push."

Edmonton coach Ken Hitchcock said the plan is to bring Klefbom back slowly, but he is aware that likely won't happen. "This is when coaches are idiots," Hitchcock told reporters. "We all start off, we have a long-term plan, we're going to ease him in, and that usually last four shifts and we'll play him the same as when he played before.

"When he played for us, everybody knows he played 25-to-27 minutes, all hard minutes, all against top players." --Field Level Media

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)