Superstar Leon Draisaitl and his Edmonton Oilers are still unable to find their way in the NHL professional ice hockey league.
The German national player lost 4-1 with his Canadian team against the Philadelphia Flyers on Friday night (October 20, 2023), thus suffering their third defeat in the fourth game of the season. The 27-year-old didn’t score a point for the first time this season and was on the ice when he conceded two goals.
McDavid demands “another level”
“It’s obvious that we have to play at a completely different level if we want to achieve our goals”said star player Connor McDavid: “Of course there are only four games, but they definitely weren’t good. It’s time for us to finally play better.”
Draisaitl has big plans for his tenth NHL season with the Oilers. After Edmonton failed in the play-offs to eventual winners in each of the last two seasons, winning the Stanley Cup is the center’s goal “ultimate goal”. Despite the false start, he already contributed seven scorer points in the first four games of the season.
Peterka and Sturm also lose
Vice world champion John-Jason Peterka also suffered his third defeat in the fourth game with the Buffalo Sabres. Buffalo lost to the Calgary Flames 3-4 despite the Munich team’s second goal of the season.
National team colleague Nico Sturm lost 3-1 against the Boston Bruins with the San Jose Sharks, while Lukas Reichel lost 4-0 against the Colorado Avalanche with the Chicago Blackhawks.
Grubauer celebrates from the bench
From a German perspective, only goalkeeper Philipp Grubauer and his team had reason to celebrate. The 7:4 victory of his Seattle Kraken against the Carolina Hurricanes was also their first win of the season. However, Grubauer had to give way to competitor Joey Daccord in goal and spent the entire game on the bench.