'It's Really Hard, Especially Him Being Sad': Leon Draisaitl Delivers Heartbreaking Post Game Interview
Leon Draisaitl's reaction to not winning the Stanley Cup.
Bob Frid-USA TODAY Sports - 'It's Really Hard, Especially Him Being Sad': Leon Draisaitl Delivers Heartbreaking Post Game InterviewEDMONTON -- "Created enough looks to find another one, but obviously it wasn't meant to be."
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That was Leon Draisaitl's first words in his post game interview. The Edmonton Oilers had just fallen short in Game seven of the Stanley Cup Final against the Florida Panthers.
The Panthers were the better team for enough of the game to come out with a 2-1 win. They will now treat their fans to their first Stanley Cup.
For the Oilers, it's heartbreak city.
They were one goal shy of tying the game and sending it into overtime. One goal away from buying more time to turn things around and pull off history.
"But obviously it wasn't meant to be."
When Draisaitl delivered that line, you can hear him holding back an outburst of tears.
What stood out in my viewing of his interview, was how highly he speaks of Connor McDavid, "he's the greatest player to ever play in my books. So many things that a lot of people don't see that he does. He single handedly turned our franchise around."
"Just love, love sharing the ice with him. He's just a really, really special person."
When trying to speak about how tough a loss like that is to process within an hour of it happening Draisaitl said this, "it's tough to put into words right now, it's really, really hard. You are one shot, one period away from maybe winning the thing. Now you have to go through 82 regular season games again, (and) play well enough to even get a kick at it."
When talking about other players battling through injuries to get to the Cup Final, Draisaitl said this, "I think everyone is battling things, some guys maybe more than other guys."
"But I don't know what to say right now. It's just heartbreaking and we were right there."
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McDavid was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy for most valuable player during the playoffs. However, he didn't come out onto the ice to accept his award. When talking about McDavid's win, Draisaitl had this to say, "I don't think he cares."
"It speaks to how amazing of a hockey player he is, but there's no player in the world that wants to win a Stanley Cup more than him. (He) does everything right every single day just to win it one day. It's really hard, especially him (McDavid) being sad."
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The entire interview Draisaitl was overcome with emotion. He never let it completely out. But it was right there, bubbling just under the surface.
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