Leon Draisaitl was the best player on his team – again. And if it’s not the German, it’s Connor McDavid. And if both of the Edmonton Oilers’ top players are actually signed off, there’s still Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. All three forwards broke 100 points in the NHL this year — the last time that was on an Oilers team was hockey legends Wayne Gretzky, Jari Kurri and Mark Messier.
That was in 1986/87 and in the end the Oilers also won the championship. However, it is far from certain that history will repeat itself this season. On the contrary: After the unfortunate opening defeat in the play-offs of the best ice hockey league in the world against the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday night, there are again experts who question the title suitability of the current Oilers generation.
In fact, Edmonton played pretty stupid against the Kings. The hosts were already leading 2:0 and 3:1 in this first of a maximum of seven duels, 17 seconds before the end of regulation time they conceded the equalizer outnumbered and finally in extra time it was 3:4 – again after a penalty time. Draisaitl was served accordingly afterwards and demanded more “maturity” from his team.
Goalkeeper position and defense have been the problem areas for years
For years, the Oilers have been considered one of the favorites for the Stanley Cup – admittedly, in a completely open league like the NHL, this applies to at least ten teams. But whenever it really matters, the team gets in their own way despite their concentrated load of offensive power. A strong goalkeeper and a stable defense are considered the key to success in the play-offs, in Edmonton these are still the critical points.
And so the big head cinema begins again, especially because Edmonton went into these play-offs in the best possible form after nine wins in a row. Forget everything. “We have to collect ourselves now and be ready for the next game,” Draisaitl demanded. The German also knows that if his team fails again early on, there will be a lot of unpleasant questions – including for him. But there’s still a lot of hockey to play in these playoffs, and the Oilers have it on their own.
However, one thing is clear: In view of the enormous talent in this team, great individual statistics are no longer enough. Especially not for Leon Draisaitl.
