German ice hockey star Leon Draisaitl clinched his tenth consecutive win in the NHL with the Edmonton Oilers, setting a franchise record. Meanwhile, Tim Stützle played an outstanding game for his Ottawa Senators.
Draisaitl from Cologne made a decisive contribution to the success in the 2:1 (0:1, 0:0, 1:0, 1:0) after overtime at the Montreal Canadiens with his 20th goal of the season and an assist.
Draisaitl equalized the Canadiens’ lead 38 seconds into the final period, then, together with his congenial strike partner Connor McDavid, he set up Evan Bouchard’s winning goal in overtime. After a miserable start to the season, the Oilers are now in eighth place in the play-offs in the Western Conference.
Draisaitl: “Adult ice hockey”
“Nobody can take that away from us anymore“, said Draisaitl about the winning streak: “We want to continue. We play very adult hockey. The teams play very hard against us. Compliments to the group for fighting through this and achieving victories.”
Tim Stützle also caused a stir. Two days before his 22nd birthday, the Viersen native scored four assists in his Ottawa Senators’ 5:4 (2:1, 2:2, 1:1) win against the San Jose Sharks. The Sens still remain last in the East.
Stützle: “I’m a really good player”
“I believe in myself. I think I’m a really good player“, said Stützle, who had previously remained without a point in four games in a row: “I worked hard in training to get the momentum back.”
Defenseman Moritz Seider achieved an important victory in the fight for the play-offs with the Detroit Red Wings in a 5:3 (1:1, 4:0, 0:2) win against the Los Angeles Kings thanks to a strong middle third.
John-Jason Peterka’s Buffalo Sabers lost 0-1 (0-0, 0-1, 0-0) against the Vancouver Canucks, who are at the top of the NHL with 61 points. Lukas Reichel and the Chicago Blackhawks lost 1:3 (0:0, 1:0, 0:3) to the Dallas Stars without super talent Connor Bedard (broken jaw).