Oilers defenceman Troy Stecher might draw short straw if Mattias Ekholm returns but that's fine with him
When an NHL player is hurt in the postseason, the hoary cliché is 'next man up,' but when you're the ultimate battler, Troy Stecher, and you have been that next man until, uh, the first man Mattias Ekholm looks like he's coming back, then what?
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'He's a better player than me, that's the reality of the world and the business we live in,' said Stecher, the Edmonton Oiler defender, who's never been a moper or a griper, just a teammate whose head is firmly wrapped around the obvious, that Ekholm, who may return for Game 4 against Dallas, is one of the NHL's best defencemen.
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'He's probably our 1a or 1b, depending on how you look at Bouch (Evan Bouchard), one, what the public thinks he is. He's an elite defenceman in this league. He played in the 4 Nations, he's played for Team Sweden. He's been to the Cup final in Nashville (and here last spring). If healthy, I want him playing. Yeah, if I'm out, I will be disappointed, but he gives us a better chance to win,' said Stecher.
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'I want to win a Stanley Cup, man. I don't want to talk poorly, but my time in Vancouver wasn't very good, we weren't very good in Arizona or Detroit. I just want to play on a contender… obviously I want to be in the line-up but at the end of the day, it's not my decision,' said Stecher.
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Nope. If Ekholm, who hasn't played any of the Oilers' playoff games, and none since April 11 against the San Jose Sharks here, returns Tuesday, it will be head coach Kris Knoblauch's call, along with Paul Coffey, who handles the defence.
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Stecher has been excellent as Darnell Nurse's partner, but he could draw the short straw if they decide Ekholm is ready and they go with six D. Or, maybe they act prudently and go with seven D and 11 forwards, and give Ekholm limited minutes to see how he is after significant undisclosed lower-body injury.
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Stecher, a small guy (184 lbs.) with a big heart like Kris Russell when he was here, has battled his lack of size for close to 600 NHL games. He's had a chip on his shoulder, as he should, because smaller players always have to prove they can play while big guys have to prove they can't in the coach's eyes.
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'Yeah, that's fair. I wouldn't have it any other way. There's no bad days in this league. I love what I do. Some days I maybe worry about my spot or my role. There were probably some long nights in regular season where I went home and was pretty concerned. But you wake up the next morning, put your hard hat and your work boots on, and you get to the rink,' he said.
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