This afternoon Edmonton Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm spoke to the media and opened up about the injury that has plagued him for the last six games. After <a href='https://www.hockeylatest.com/nhl-team/edmonton-oilers/edmonton-oilers-confirm-frustrating-health-update-involving-mattias-ekholm' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>being shut down by the Edmonton Oilers training staff almost 2 weeks ago</a> Mattias Ekholm is finally set to return to the lineup tonight. Originally it was reported that Ekholm was dealing with an illness that had plagued Team Sweden at the 4 Nations Face-Off keeping him out of the lineup. Quickly the reasons changed to a lingering injury that needed to be maintained for Ekholm creating a lot more concern for his availability going forward. After 13 days away from the team and out of the lineup head coach Kris Knoblauch confirmed Ekholm and fellow injured star Zach Hyman will return tonight against the Utah Hockey Club. <div align='center' class='pl20 pr20'><blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'><a href='https://twitter.com/TonyBrarOTV/status/1902045282122264623'> </a></blockquote></div> After returning to practice today Ekholm himself had an opportunity to speak to the media and talked about the events that led him to miss so much time with a lower-body injury. <h3>Mattias Ekholm Opens Up About Frustrating Injury Problems</h3> During his post-practice interview, Ekholm confirmed he has been dealing with an actual injury and even revealed it was a lower-body ailment that had been bothering him for some time. <div align='center' class='pl20 pr20'><blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'><a href='https://twitter.com/EdmontonOilers/status/1902051576979845494'> </a></blockquote></div> After Ekholm spoke head coach Kris Knoblauch gave some insight on the kind of things that the Oilers lineup has been missing in Ekholm's absence. He's an exceptional penalty killer. He's not just up off the glass not make a mistake kind of guy. He's able to defend extremely well but also get Leon and Connor the puck on break-out passes as well. <div align='center' class='pl20 pr20'><blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'><a href='https://twitter.com/EdmontonOilers/status/1902089446696349840'> </a></blockquote></div> Tonight will be a big test for Ekholm and the Oilers as they take on a young and talented Utah Hockey Club who are fighting for a wild card spot in the Western Conference. If the Edmonton Oilers are going to reach the goals they hope to in the Stanley Cup Playoffs Mattias Ekholm will need to be a huge piece of the puzzle. Tonight he has a chance to prove he is back to full strength and ready for the challenge.