Like finding out that someone has a sore throat, and you’re only getting The Two Tenor. Or winning a trip for two to a ballgame in Chicago — only to discover it’s the White Sox, not the Cubs.

In fact, when McDavid found out on Wednesday morning that Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (illness) and Jake Walman (injured) were both going to miss the game against St. Louis that evening, even he couldn’t bear to watch the Oilers play without their captain anymore.

“It was a difficult situation for our group as a whole. Guys coming in and out of the lineup, sick, hurt, whatever… We had to go with five (defencemen),” began McDavid, after a three-assists night in a 4-3 Oilers win.

McDavid was slated to play Friday night against San Jose. But when he saw that his team would be forced to play with 11 forwards and five defencemen, he lobbied hard for a spot in the lineup.

On a team that has recently seen Leon Draisaitl return from injury, then get hurt again after a few games, and Trent Frederic re-injure his high ankle sprain on the first shift of his return, pushing up return dates is a touchy subject with the medical staff.

“He wouldn’t have been cleared just because he felt like playing. The medical staff obviously felt he was in good hands and would not create any more damage,” said head coach Kris Knoblauch, on an injury that has never been disclosed but is believed to be soft tissue groin or core.

“He really felt that he was ready and wanted to play, especially with losing another centreman, and it was going to be as good as it was going to be.”

Like a kid making a deal with his parents to push back bedtime so he can watch the third period, McDavid pulled out all the stops on Wednesday afternoon.

“I wasn’t taking anyone’s spot (in the lineup),” he reasoned. “I thought it was an opportunity, and if it was no good, (he would) take a couple shifts and come off.

“Obviously, it felt good, no problems.”

On a night when the Blues’ top line of Robert Thomas with Pavel Buchnevich and Jordan Kyrou was unstoppable (two goals, seven points), McDavid’s presence finally gave the injury-plagued Oilers a first-line presence of their own.

He set up Connor Brown for the game-opener and the winner, which Brown slipped past Jordan Binnington with just 20 seconds left in regulation.

While the regulation loss saw St. Louis fall into eighth place behind Minnesota, the Oilers’ win combined with Calgary’s overtime loss in Anaheim shrunk Edmonton’s magic number to clinch a playoff spot to one point gained by Edmonton, or lost by Calgary.

On defence, Brett Kulak (29:04), Darnell Nurse (28:06), and Evan Bouchard (28:15) all did yeoman’s work, losing Walman after the morning skate.

McDavid didn’t have a shot on goal, but watched his old Erie Otters teammate Brown score twice to sink a very good St. Louis club.

“It was massive,” McDavid said of the winner. “That’s what it is all about, guys stepping up, and we’ve had different guys stepping up throughout this injury and sickness bug.”

Like everyone, Brown left the rink after the morning skate under the impression that McDavid would not play. When he arrived for the game, the whiteboard had him on McDavid’s right wing.

“We kind of knew that he was itching to play. It was just a matter of if they let him,” said Brown.

Is that the kind of thing a captain does, when he sees that his team is short-handed?

“I think he’s the true embodiment of a captain,” said Brown. “Unselfish, hard-working, leads by example.”

So, having all but clinched a playoff spot and a fourth straight matchup with Los Angeles, the Oilers still have to work some major pieces back into their lineup. Leon Draisaitl, Mattias Ekholm, Stuart Skinner, Trent Frederic and Evander Kane are all yet to return.

With four games to play, can they integrate all of those players and be ready to win a playoff round that will begin in about 10 days?

“It would be great to have our full lineup in, and get everybody up and running together and rolling like a big machine,” McDavid said. “Obviously that’s not the case, and it falls on everybody as individuals to make sure they’re doing whatever they’ve got to do to be ready come that opening game.

“I know I’m doing everything I can and I see guys around here doing everything they can. It’s obviously not ideal timing but we’re a good team in here and we’ll figure it out.”

This last stretch without several key players had breathed some confidence into the depth players, Brown said.

 “The last couple of weeks, a lot of guys have been finding their game, especially offensively. Guys have been finding a little touch with a few extra minutes.”

Sinking to third place after an uneasy season, and now enduring a wicked run of injuries, Edmonton’s stock as a true Stanley Cup contender has taken a hit across the league.

Not so much inside the room, however.

“Extremely confident,” Brown said. “We had a good road trip together — I thought we bonded. The level of belief is extremely high in our group.

“We understand that we’ve got a lot of dogs and guys that are hungry.”

Of course, it’s always better when the biggest dog scratches his way into the lineup.