Draisaitl Opens Up About a Surprising Truth Behind His Goal Scoring

Leon Draisaitl is one of the best goal scorers in the world, but even he admits that when the goals stop coming, it gets to him.

After Monday's practice, Draisaitl talked about his goal-scoring streak. "I get paid to score goals, and when I'm not scoring goals, it rattles me. I'm frustrated, of course," he said.

His line, which also includes Connor McDavid and Vasily Podkolzin, has been dominant to start the season. Even in a 7-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday, he and McDavid did what they could. It wasn't enough, but he understands his role.

It's especially important when the bottom six isn't delivering like the Oilers might want them to. It would be a real problem if that line's offense dried up. 

"Of course you feel better," he responded when asked if it's different when he's on a heater. And he is on a heater. He has nine goals in his six-game goal-scoring streak. It was good enough for Draisaitl to be named the NHL's first star of the week.

He said he understands that these stretches of goal scoring don't always last, so he'll take them as they come and battle through the tough times when they don't. 

Is it surprising that Draisaitl was so open about how frustrated he gets? Or is it refreshingly honest? Some players would simply choose to say it only matters if they win. Draisaitl seems to understand what helps the Oilers win. 

Even superstars feel the pressure when the goals dry up. At least Draisaitl was honest about it.

Expect Draisaitl to stay hot as he continues to play with McDavid. The coach, for now, is keeping them on the same line. 

Mike Babcock asked about keeping McDavid and Draisaitl together:

"We go through everything every day. If we think there's a better way, we're going to do that. And so when is that? I don't know the answer. This has been working pretty good, and I thought we were set up to have success on Saturday night, and we didn't. So let's bounce back today and figure it out as we go."

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