The last time that the Edmonton Oilers were without Connor McDavid this forward was dominate in his place.
The Edmonton Oilers play their first game of the 2023-24 season without Connor McDavid. Their captain is the heartbeat of the team - he pushes everyone to play better and can take over a game on command.
Everyone else in the lineup will need to step up to the plate in his absence. Leon Draisaitl has shown in the past that he can be even more dominant when McDavid is out of the lineup.
Leon Draisaitl.In the small sample size of six games from the 2019-2020 season, Draisaitl was a beast for the Oilers. He scored 12 points - a two points per game pace. Of those points four were goals and eight were assists.
In those six games Draisaitl logged 23:36, 24:34, 23:35, 24:24, 29:22 & 24:37. He's averaged around 22 minutes a game so far this year. Expect Draisaitl to be leaned on almost two minutes more per game.
Hopefully this next stretch of games can help silence the Draisaitl doubters. He's an elite shooter, incredible nopasser, and highly competitive player.
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