Draisaitl's impressive run comes to an end, leading to an OIlers defeat.
After scoring in every playoff game this season, German ice hockey sensation Leon Draisaitl finds himself on the losing side for the first time. In game 14 of the postseason, Draisaitl was unable to register a goal or an assist, costing his team, the Edmonton Oilers, in their battle against the Dallas Stars. The teams faced off in the Western Conference finals, with the Stars taking home a 1-3 victory.
Connor Brown scored the first playoff goal of his career, tying the game for the Oilers at the five-minute mark, yet it was not enough to prevent their defeat. Jamie Benn put Dallas in the lead just four minutes into the game with their first shot on goal. Mason Marchment scored a decisive empty-net goal twelve minutes into the final period, with Esa Lindell adding another one just two minutes before the end. Dallas goaltender Jake Oettinger blocked a total of 28 shots.
The winning streak of Draisaitl, who is an integral part of the Offensive game for the Oilers, comes to a sudden halt. His exceptional performance throughout the season-long playoffs up to this point included at least one goal in each of the previous 13 games, a feat that also saw him top the overall playoff goal involvement standings with 25 goal contributions league-wide.
The series now shifts to Edmonton for the next two games, with the Oilers aiming to make history by reaching the Stanley Cup final for the first time in the past eighteen years. To secure their entry, they must win four games altogether. The team's captain, Connor McDavid, remains optimistic. "It's going to be a tough series, but we're confident in these games," he said. Most recently, Edmonton made it to the conference final in 2022 but suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the eventual champions, the Colorado Avalanche, having lost all four games of the series (0-4).
Read also:
- Prodigies of sport: Littler's predecessors
- Nagelsmann's announcement: A restless Christmas for national team players
- What sports fans prefer to watch on television
- The calm before the upheaval: Nagelsmann's European Championship plans
Source: www.ntv.de
