The Edmonton Oilers didn’t have to think twice about selecting Leon Draisaitl by the time the third overall pick rolled around in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.
In 128 games with the WHL’s Prince Albert Raiders, the Cologne, Germany native scored 59 goals and added 104 assists for 163 points. Draisaitl went on to play 37 games with the Oilers during the 2014-15 season, but after scoring just two goals and totaling nine points in 37 games, the team decided to send him back to the WHL.
Draisaitl was traded to Kelowna during the 2015 World Juniors, so he when he returned to the WHL he played the final 32 games of the year with the Rockets.
Despite playing less than half the season, Draisaitl gave the team a huge boost as he scored 19 goals and totaled 53 points, and went on to score another 10 goals and 28 points in 19 playoff games to help the team win the 2015 WHL Championship and earned playoff MVP honours.
On Tuesday, the Rockets honoured Draisaitl’s incredible run with the team by adding a mural of the Oilers’ centre to the wall outside the team’s locker room.
The Rockets went on to lose 2-1 in overtime to the Oshawa Generals in the Memorial Cup Final, but Draistail was still named Memorial Cup MVP after finishing with seven points in five games.
The 21-year-old is coming off a career-year where he scored 29 goals and added 48 assists for 77 points in 82 games, and also added six goals and 16 points in 13 playoff games.
(H/T Twitter/Kelowna_Rockets)
