EDMONTON, Alberta — Oilers captain Connor McDavid suffered a lower-body injury and did not return in the third period of a 4-3 overtime loss to the Western Conference-leading Winnipeg Jets on Thursday night.

Goalie Stuart Skinner also was hurt when he was involved in a late-game collision and removed due to concussion protocols. Calvin Pickard stopped three shots in Skinner’s place.

Speaking after the game, coach Kris Knoblauch said there was no update on the statuses of either McDavid or Skinner.

McDavid appeared to get hurt while attempting to chase down the puck in the Jets’ zone when he was bumped by Winnipeg defenseman Josh Morrissey.

In the second period, McDavid assisted on Jeff Skinner‘s goal to extend his point streak to 13 games. McDavid has combined for four goals and 15 assists in the span.

McDavid’s injury came at the same time the Oilers held out NHL leading scorer Leon Draisaitl for precautionary reasons after the forward was hurt in a 7-1 win over Utah on Tuesday. Knoblauch said Draisaitl is day-to-day.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

EDMONTON, Alberta — NHL leading goal-scorer Leon Draisaitl was scratched due to an undisclosed injury in the Edmonton Oilers‘ home game against the Western Conference-leading Winnipeg Jets on Thursday night.

Before falling 4-3 in overtime to Winnipeg, Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch referred to Draisaitl as being doubtful to play in listing the forward’s status as day to day. He said the team was taking a cautious approach a month before the playoffs open and after Draisaitl was hurt in a 7-1 win over Utah on Tuesday.

“We feel that this is something that he probably could play through,” Knoblauch said. “We certainly don’t want it to be an issue for the long term.”

Draisaitl’s 49 goals lead the league, and he’s one away from reaching the 50-goal plateau for the fourth time in 11 NHL seasons. He also ranks second in the league with 101 points, three behind Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon entering games Thursday.

In the meantime, Oilers forward Evander Kane joined his teammates for an optional pregame skate for the first time this season. The 33-year-old Kane has yet to play this season. He remains on long-term IR after having abdominal surgery in September followed by a knee procedure done in January.

Also joining the Oilers for their morning skate was newly sworn in Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who is a fan of the team having grown up in Edmonton. Carney wore an Oilers No. 24 jersey to represent being the nation’s 24th prime minister upon replacing Justin Trudeau, who stepped down earlier this month.

The 60-year-old Carney was a third-string goaltender at Harvard and co-captain of the Oxford University Blues.

In calling it “a special moment” to be joined by Carney, Knoblauch added: “It’s nice to have a (prime minister) who cheers for the good team.”

Carney was in Edmonton to meet with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith.

WASHINGTON — Alex Ovechkin is one step closer to NHL history after the “Great 8” reached a fitting number in his pursuit of Wayne Gretzky’s career goals record.

Ovechkin scored his 888th goal Thursday night in a 3-2 victory by the Washington Capitals over Philadelphia that helped them clinch a playoff berth, moving seven back of passing Gretzky’s mark of 894 that long seemed unapproachable.

“Again a big goal at a big time,” goaltender Charlie Lindgren said. “Credit to Ovi: another big goal and another goal off the mark.”

With just over five minutes left in the first period, the puck hit linemate Aliaksei Protas in front and he passed it to Ovechkin. The 39-year-old beat Samuel Ersson for his 35th goal of the season, which is tied for fourth most in the league.

“It was a great play,” Ovechkin said. “Take it and move on.”

Confetti flew and Big Joe Turner’s “Shake, Rattle and Roll” blared from speakers as mascot Slapshot flipped the goal counter in a corner of the arena from 887 to 888. Fans chanted “Ovi! Ovi!” as play resumed.

“Every time he scores, the crowd gets 10 times more involved and it just kind of blows up, and whatever happens after, they’re still always cheering,” winger Andrew Mangiapane said. “It’s a great atmosphere every time he gets a goal for us.”

Mangiapane, who wears jersey No. 88, saw the triple 8s and manifested he might get one, too. Midway through the second period, he scored.

“There was lots of 8s out there,” Ovechkin said.

Ovechkin at his current pace has a chance to to break Gretzky’s record before the end of the regular season.

“It seemed like the last two years no one really expected it to happen this quick,” Flyers captain Sean Couturier said. “It’s definitely special. I’m sure when we’re done playing we can say we played against the greatest goal scorer of all time. … Happy for him. It’s fun to see him get closer.”

The Capitals have 13 games left in the regular season before the playoffs. Ovechkin has one year left on his current contract in case he does not reach the mark this season.

His teammates are hoping he gets to 895 with time to spare.

“We’d love to see him get it done,” Lindgren said. “He’s generating a ton of scoring chances every single game. He could’ve had a couple tonight. Obviously, I don’t know exactly what he’s feeling, I don’t know how much pressure he’s feeling, but, boy, I’ll tell you, seeing him and being with him every day you look at him, you wouldn’t know that he’s feeling any sort of pressure at all.

“He’s still going out and producing and scoring goals for us and being one heck of a captain.”

Coach Spencer Carbery believes there are many positives for the Capitals with Ovechkin on this mission.

“Our guys feed off it on the bench – they’re pulling for him,” Carbery said. “I think it energizes them to play at a higher level. … There’s no question as a coach I feel like this chase and the energy around it hasn’t been a distraction or a hindrance to our group. It’s been a massive benefit.”