Stanley Cup final is becoming a showcase for the Edmonton Oilers' Leon Draisaitl

Stephen Whyno · The Associated Press

· Posted: Jun 13, 2025 9:12 AM EDT | Last Updated: 3 hours ago

This is becoming Leon Draisaitl's Stanley Cup last for the Edmonton Oilers.

The standout German guardant has scored the overtime extremity successful each of their 2 wins successful the title bid rematch against the Florida Panthers, including Thursday nighttime successful Game 4 to propulsion Edmonton even.

He's conscionable the 5th subordinate successful NHL past and archetypal successful much than 3 decades to people doubly successful overtime successful the final.

"He's arsenic clutch arsenic it gets," goaltender Calvin Pickard said portion sitting adjacent to Draisaitl, who besides had a brace of assists for a three-point performance.

"Always scores large goals astatine large times."

Draisaitl's 4 OT goals this playoffs are the astir successful a azygous postseason. John LeClair was the past to people 2 OT goals successful a last for Montreal backmost successful 1993, the past clip a Canadian squad won the Cup.

Edmonton is 2 victories distant from ending that drought acknowledgment successful ample portion to Draisaitl delivering erstwhile it matters most.

WATCH | Oilers fans observe aft a nail-biter nighttime successful Game 4: 

'It's incredible'

"It's incredible," longtime teammate Ryan Nugent-Hopkins said. "He's a equine retired determination for america — conscionable always. It's conscionable constant. It's consistent. We ever tin thin connected him, and helium ever finds a mode to get those large ones."

It's besides thing new.

Among modern time players with astatine slightest 40 games of playoff experience, lone Hall of Famers Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux and teammate Connor McDavid person produced astatine a higher complaint astatine the toughest clip of the twelvemonth to enactment the puck successful the net.

Draisaitl is averaging 1.49 points a game, and this bid has been a showcase for him aft being acold little than 100 per cent a twelvemonth agone erstwhile helium and the Oilers mislaid successful the final. All the overtimes aren't bothering him.

"I consciousness great," Draisaitl said. "It's a agelong season, of course, for either side. We've played the aforesaid magnitude of minutes successful this series. Fatigue kicks successful astatine immoderate point, but your adrenaline usually takes implicit and you conscionable spot distant astatine it, spot distant astatine it."

Draisaitl addressed teammates aft a 6-1 nonaccomplishment successful Game 3 connected Monday night, an uncharacteristic effort from the oldest squad successful the league. He was arsenic arsenic unpleased aft Edmonton fell down 3-0 successful the archetypal play of Game 4.

"We were benignant of lollygagging astir a small bit," Draisaitl said. "It's surely not the clip to lollygag around, particularly aft getting spanked successful Game 3."

The Oilers rallied to necktie it, took the pb and past gave up the tying extremity with 19.5 seconds near successful regulation. That acceptable the signifier for Draisaitl to pb the mode with his play, not conscionable his words.

"He not lone says what he's going to do, helium backs it up with his play and his actions," defenceman Darnell Nurse said. "That's what makes him an astonishing leader. We get into overtime, those tense moments and helium has an quality to unbend successful them and conscionable marque plays. He gets rewarded for moving hard."

WATCH | Oilers' Drasaitl scores OT victor successful Game 4 of Stanley Cup last to adjacent series: 

Draisaitl accurately called his extremity "a fortunate bounce — nary concealed astir it." But determination were capable plays passim the nighttime that helium did not finish, truthful telephone it even.

With the Panthers putting each their vigor into stopping McDavid, Draisaitl is taking implicit conscionable astir immoderate clip he's connected the ice.

"Leon, I don't cognize what could beryllium said that truly conveys what helium brings to our squad — not lone the enactment but the play," manager Kris Knoblauch said. "He has conscionable elevated his crippled successful the toughest moments."

Draisaitl is making his lawsuit for the Conn Smythe Trophy arsenic playoff MVP, the grant McDavid won past twelvemonth successful a losing effort and refused to permission the locker country to accept. He pulled adjacent with McDavid arsenic the favourite connected BetMGM Sportsbook aft scoring successful overtime and tying him for the postseason scoring pb with 32 points.

Asked however Draisaitl seems to beryllium truthful automatic successful overtime and different clutch situations, teammate Vasily Podkolzin responded: "Because he's 1 of the champion players successful the world. That's why."