NHL News

Home

Teams

Quizzes

Newsletter

Perry Nelson-Imagn Images

'He’s Invaluable,' Connor McDavid Lauds Leon Draisaitl Following Game 1 OT Winner Against Panthers

Originally posted on FirstSportz | By Vinay Dave | Last updated Jun 5, 2025 12:22 PM ET

The 2025 Stanley Cup Final got underway on Wednesday. The rematch of the previous year’s final saw the Edmonton Oilers land the first punch as Leon Draisaitl scored an overtime winner in Game 1. His forward partner, Connor McDavid later heaped huge praise on him.

The Oilers and the Panthers have once been in dominating form in the playoffs this year. Both teams won their respective Conference finals in 5 games and set up a rematch.

Last year, the Panthers started strong and took a 3-0 series before the Oilers came back and forced Game only to lose in the final game of the season.

This time, the Oilers started off strong. They took a 1-0 lead inside 66 seconds as Draisaitl tucked the puck away. The Panthers then showed off their recovery talent and scored 3 times to take a 3-1 in the 2nd period.

The Oilers, who have the home advantage for this series, mounted a comeback of their own and scored twice before the end of the regulation period to take the game into overtime.

With just seconds remaining in overtime, Draisaitl scored his 2nd goal of the game while combining with McDavid. The Oilers captain would set up his strike partner from close range to seal a 4-3 comeback win in Game 1.

While speaking to the reporters after the game, McDavid claimed that Draisaitl “doesn’t get enough respect” for his actions.

You can’t put a number on it. He’s invaluable. Does so many good things. Clutch, faceoffs, you name it, he does it. Doesn’t get enough respect or credit for his defensive abilities. When he’s dug in, there’s not many better, maybe nobody better.

Leon Draisaitl ties Stanley Cup playoffs history following overtime winner against Panthers in Game 1

Leon Draisaitl turned out to be the hero for the Edmonton Oilers in Game 1. The German International popped up late in overtime to score his 2nd goal of the match and sent the fans inside the Rogers Place into a frenzy.

His goal also turned out to be a historic one. This overtime goal from him was the 3rd time he had scored beyond the regulation period. He previously scored 2 OT winners against the Vegas Golden Knights in the second round (Game 2 and 5).

This saw him tie the record for the most OT goals scored in a single postseason. He is the fifth player after Mel Hill, Maurice Richard, Corey Perry , and Matthew Tkachuk to achieve this feat.

Overall, it was Draisaitl’s 9th goal of the playoffs this year. On top of that, he also has 18 assists, making it 27 points from 17 games. Only Connor McDavid has more than him (28 points).

Oilers take lead in Stanley Cup Final for the first time in 35 years following Leon Draisaitl’s OT winner

The Edmonton Oilers are one of the most successful franchises in NHL history. However, things have not gone well for the Canadian outfit in recent years. Following their Game 1 win, they took a lead in the Stanley Cup Final for the first time in 35 years.

The last time the Oilers lead in the Stanley Cup Final was in 1990. They would go on to beat the Boston Bruins 4-1 in that series and claim their fifth cup in 7th season, the only one without Wayne Gretzky.

In the other two appearances since then, in 2006 and 2024, the Oilers have been the chasing pack. In 2006, they fell 3-1 behind the Carolina Hurricanes and ended up losing in Game 7. As for last year, the fell 3-0 in the series, came back to make it 3-3 and then suffered a heartbreak in Game 7 again.

Game 2 of this series will be played on Friday. After that, the action will turn towards the Amerant Bank Arena in Florida.

This article first appeared on FirstSportz and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: