Draisaitl ‘not happy’ with 0 goals in Cup Final

EDMONTON, Alberta — Connor McDavid has dominated the Stanley Cup Final with 11 points in five games, two behind Wayne Gretzky’s NHL record of 13 with Edmonton in 1988.

Leon Draisaitl, the Oilers’ other superstar, has not dominated in the Final. He has hardly made a whimper offensively.

His two assists in Edmonton’s 8-1 Game 4 win are his only points of the series against the Florida Panthers. Draisaitl has gone seven contests without a goal after scoring 10 in his first 16 playoff games of 2024. Overall, he has 30 points in 23 postseason games this year.

“Obviously not happy with the way I’m playing, haven’t found my game, haven’t found my leg. Just not the standard that I hold myself to, obviously,” Draisaitl said Friday, hours before Game 6.

Draisaitl demurred when asked whether the Panthers’ defense or his revolving door of linemates contributed to his slump.

“It’s me,” he said. “I hold myself to extremely high standards, and if I don’t get to that, obviously I’m not happy with it.”

His coach and teammates feel that Draisaitl’s standards might be a little too high and that he is contributing beyond the score sheet.

“I think he’s got to realize that even if he’s not feeling great, he’s still better than 99% of the guys out there,” said forward Dylan Holloway, who has been Draisaitl’s winger for much of the playoffs. “He’s been awesome. I think he’s just got to keep playing the way he is.”

Coach Kris Knoblauch called Draisaitl’s body of work “tremendous” and said his star might be too hard on himself.

“I’ve seen Leon play better than he has, but I think he’s contributing a lot and I think he’s harder on himself than he should be,” Knoblauch said Friday. “I think yesterday was a good day of practice. He looked like himself, and I’m expecting him to play a good game tonight.”

This goalless streak matches Draisaitl’s longest of the season. He didn’t score a goal from Oct. 19 to Nov. 4, 2023. Coach Jay Woodcroft was fired three games later in favor of Knoblauch.

“I’ve always been able to come back from stretches where I maybe haven’t been at my best,” Draisaitl said.

The Panthers lead the series 3-2, but the Oilers have roared back with two straight wins, becoming just the fourth team in Stanley Cup Final history to force a Game 6 after falling behind 3-0. Only one team in NHL history, the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, has rallied to win the Cup after being down 3-0.

Draisaitl admits the chance to make history isn’t lost on him.

“I think we’re all human. Of course you think about it. But we’re still in no position to make that a priority, right?” he said. “We’ve got to win a game at home tonight and get this thing back to Florida and then it’s a one-game series. Your focus is on this one game tonight and not what’s going to happen in four or five days from now.”