EDMONTON, Alberta -- When the Edmonton Oilers won the Western Conference championship in Dallas, star center Leon Draisaitl took out his phone to FaceTime a friend: teammate Zach Hyman , who had suffered a season-ending wrist injury earlier in the series.

"It caught me off guard. I was crying. It was really emotional. It meant the world to me," Hyman said Wednesday, hours before the Oilers were scheduled to open their Stanley Cup Final rematch against the Florida Panthers .

Hyman said he'll travel with the Oilers throughout the series, offering whatever advice and encouragement he can while being unable to play.

"He's a very strong emotional leader to our team. He holds things together," Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said. "So yeah, to say that we're going to miss him is an unders

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