It’s been a feast or famine type of season for the Edmonton Oilers, who have sandwiched a 2-11-2 skid between a 16-5-0 start and a 20-9-3 record over the last 10 weeks. Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid have also followed a V-shaped trajectory. After they began the season on such a tear that reaching 150 points seemed possible, Edmonton’s superstars averaged less than one point per game over the next two-plus months, which by their lofty standards amounts to a major slump.
Draisaitl and McDavid have since returned to form and have really hit their stride during the stretch run, recording 18 and 19 points, respectively, over the last 10 games. With 14 games remaining on Edmonton’s schedule, McDavid has 100 points, and Draisaitl has 97, to sit first and second in the NHL, and have a very real chance to reach some tremendous milestones in the three big offensive categories by the time the season ends on April 29.
NHL Goal Lead
Draisaitl is neck-and-neck with Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews for the league lead in goals. After he scored his 49th goal this season in Edmonton’s victory over the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday (March 30), Matthews held serve, scoring his 50th goal on Thursday (March 31) when Toronto downed the Winnipeg Jets, 7-3.
When Draisaitl gets his next goal, whether it comes Friday night when Edmonton hosts the St. Louis Blues or the wait is a bit longer, he’ll tie his career-high set in 2018-19 and become just the fourth player in franchise history to score 50 or more goals in multiple seasons, joining Hall-of-Famers Glenn Anderson, Wayne Gretzky, and Jari Kurri. Draisaitl is on pace to score 65 goals, which would be the seventh-highest single-season total in Oilers history, and the most since Kurri tallied 68 in 1985-86.
McDavid has scored 37 goals in 67 games, and if he maintains that pace over the remaining 14 games, he’ll finish around 45 goals, which would be a new benchmark, besting his career-high of 41 goals established in 2017-18 and equalled in 2018-19. He would also become the sixth player in franchise history with at least three seasons of 40-plus goals, joining Anderson, Draisaitl, Gretzky, Kurri and Mark Messier.
NHL Lead in Assists
With 48 assists, Draisaitl is well on his way to his fourth consecutive season of 50-plus assists with the Oilers. That’s a feat that has been accomplished by five other players in Edmonton: Paul Coffey, Gretzky, Kurri, McDavid and Messier.
McDavid has 63 assists, putting him on pace for 76 assists, which would be one more than his current career-best of 75 that was reached in 2018-19. He already has three 70-plus assist seasons to his credit, and a fourth would be more than any other player in Oilers history who did not wear No. 99.
NHL Point Leader
Draisaitl is just three points short of reaching the century mark for the third time and needs to only average one point per game the rest of the season to surpass his current career-high of 110.
McDavid has scored 37 goals in 67 games, and if he maintains that pace over the remaining 14 games, he’ll finish around 45 goals, which would be a new benchmark, besting his career-high of 41 goals established in 2017-18 and equalled in 2018-19. He would also become the sixth player in franchise history with at least three seasons of 40-plus goals, joining Anderson, Draisaitl, Gretzky, Kurri and Mark Messier.
NHL Lead in Assists
With 48 assists, Draisaitl is well on his way to his fourth consecutive season of 50-plus assists with the Oilers. That’s a feat that has been accomplished by five other players in Edmonton: Paul Coffey, Gretzky, Kurri, McDavid and Messier.
McDavid has 63 assists, putting him on pace for 76 assists, which would be one more than his current career-best of 75 that was reached in 2018-19. He already has three 70-plus assist seasons to his credit, and a fourth would be more than any other player in Oilers history who did not wear No. 99.
NHL Point Leader
Draisaitl is just three points short of reaching the century mark for the third time and needs to only average one point per game the rest of the season to surpass his current career-high of 110.
