Oilers’ Leon Draisaitl concerned team is trending in wrong direction
After a stunning early exit from the Stanley Cup Playoffs, one of the top players in the game is expressing concern about the direction his team might be heading.
During the team’s end-of-season media availability, Edmonton Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl was asked whether he takes heed of how the team is trending after being eliminated in the Pacific Division Semifinals by the Anaheim Ducks.
Draisaitl, never the one to shy away from speaking his mind, stated that the Oilers reversed its trend of play since advancing to two straight Stanley Cup Finals.
“I am concerned because we’re not trending in the right direction,” Draisaitl said. “We’ve taken big steps backwards. We got to get a grip of this and head back in the right direction.”
The German star elaborated, noting that the Oilers weren’t doing a “good enough job of properly winning games.”
“I don’t like using terminology of taking the regular season [seriously], because we do. We go into every game and we try to do it right. We say the right things. I think you really have to, in the regular season, form these moments. You have to get comfortable in these moments. We didn’t do that this year. It ended up showing in the first round here.”
Draisaitl was also asked about the team’s window to be a championship contender, with captain Connor McDavid having his two-year contract extension kicking in next season. Draisaitl mentioned that the timeline before No. 97 (potentially) becomes a free agent dictates what the team does in the near future, and that the Oilers need to upgrade their level of play if they want to reach their ultimate goal.
“In what world do you have the best player in the world on your team and you’re not looking to win? I know we’re looking to win, but we need to be better. We have to be better. There’s no way around it. We have to improve. He’s signed for two more years and, and God knows where that goes, but we have two years here right now. … We have to get significantly better.”
One of the things Draisaitl mentioned that this year’s team lacked was depth scoring. He noted the reason the team during its run to the 2024 final was so good was that all hands were on deck.
“That was the best team we’ve had,” Draisaitl added. “Everybody was so big…The McLeods, the Foegeles, all those guys. They played such a massive role in all of it. Desharnais, Ceci, you need those guys to win. … At the end of the day Connor, Bouchard, maybe myself, like, maybe the three of us, when the game’s on the line, we have to make a difference…we have to set the tone. … But, at the end of the day, it’s not a three-man team. It’s not a four-man team. You need, need everybody to feel important. You need everybody to want to be important.”