EDMONTON, Alberta — Mark Messier and Wayne Gretzky are the 2 highest-scoring gamers in Stanley Cup playoffs historical past. However Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl simply handed the Edmonton Oilers’ dynastic duo within the NHL document books for one specific achievement.
“They’re one of the best gamers of their technology,” mentioned Messier, who’s second (295 factors in 236 video games) to Gretzky (382 factors in 208 video games) in all-time postseason scoring.
Gretzky and Messier had 28 playoff video games through which they each scored a number of factors. Sport 2 of the Stanley Cup Last on Friday towards the Florida Panthers was the twenty ninth sport through which McDavid (three assists) and Draisaitl (objective, help) each had a number of factors in a postseason sport, passing Messier and The Nice One.
They path Gretzky and Glenn Anderson by one sport for second all time on this class however will want a while to match Gretzky and linemate Jari Kurri, who had 44 multipoint video games along with Edmonton and Los Angeles.
“It is truly unbelievable for a franchise like Edmonton to have had the groups and the gamers which have come by way of there, Messier mentioned. “There are NHL groups which were round endlessly and by no means had a Bobby Orr or Mario Lemieux. For a workforce that had Gretzky to now have McDavid and Draisaitl is unbelievable.”
In fact, Messier was no slouch both. The Hockey Corridor of Fame middle is third in NHL historical past with 1,887 profession factors. He and Gretzky gained 4 Stanley Cups collectively in Edmonton, earlier than Messier gained one other with the Oilers after The Nice One was traded to Los Angeles. They had been the engine for these groups, with Gretzky (252 factors) and Messier (215 factors) as the primary and second playoff scorers in Edmonton historical past. McDavid (148 factors in 92 video games) is fifth, whereas Draisaitl (137 in 92 video games) is sixth.
McDavid and Draisaitl eclipsing an achievement by Gretzky and Messier is poetic. Each units of stars had been the first- and second-line facilities on the Oilers. All of them have been NHL MVPs. The present Edmonton standard-bearers are attempting to convey the primary Stanley Cup to town for the reason that Oilers’ dynasty resulted in 1990.
“They have been on this group for a very long time now. Two of one of the best gamers on the earth. Everybody is aware of how a lot they imply to the Oilers,” mentioned their goalie, Stuart Skinner, who grew up in Edmonton as an Oilers fan.
Draisaitl was drafted third in 2014 by Edmonton behind defenseman Aaron Ekblad and middle Sam Reinhart, each of whom at the moment are on the Panthers. McDavid was the coveted first decide in 2015 whom Edmonton drafted after successful the lottery and transferring up from No. 3.
McDavid and Draisaitl led the Oilers to the Stanley Cup Last final season and practically rallied them from a 3-0 collection deficit to the Panthers earlier than dropping in Sport 7. McDavid completed with 42 factors in 25 video games. Draisaitl had 31 factors in the identical span.
This postseason, McDavid leads the playoffs with 31 factors, whereas Draisaitl is second with 29 factors.
Draisaitl has scored no less than 10 objectives in three straight postseasons, becoming a member of New York Islanders legend Mike Bossy (4 from 1980 to 1993) and Gretzky (three from 1983 to 1985) as the one gamers to have executed so.
That is McDavid’s third 30-point postseason, tying him with Messer for second-most all time behind Gretzky, who had six. Assuming Draisaitl will get to 30 factors, it’s going to even be his third 30-point postseason. Draisaitl’s subsequent level may even set a brand new NHL document for him and McDavid: No different teammates in Stanley Cup playoffs historical past have had back-to-back 30-point postseasons.
Not even Gretzky and Messier.
“I feel Oilers followers respect it due to the Nineteen Eighties after which the lengthy drought and now what they’ve with McDavid and Draisaitl,” Messier mentioned. “There’s appreciation of their drive, work ethic, expertise and willpower to be one of the best. They’ve proven each a kind of attributes.”
AT THE END of Sport 1 of the Western Convention finals, because the Dallas Stars had been celebrating a miraculous third-period comeback win, Draisaitl and McDavid concurrently turned their heads to look at one another on the Oilers bench.
The Oilers are 3-0 and have outscored Dallas 13-2 since this figuring out look pic.twitter.com/svRvq0MukK
— Mike Commito (@mikecommito) Could 28, 2025
This grew to become recognized on social media as “The Look.”
Followers marked time as every thing that occurred earlier than “The Look” and every thing that adopted it. Specifically that the Oilers gained the subsequent 4 video games towards Dallas, outscoring the Stars 19-5, after which gained Sport 1 of the Last.
Whereas the web bestowed gravitas to this transient however smoldering gaze, McDavid mentioned he did not recall the second. However he did verify that, over time, he and Draisaitl have developed some form of telepathic communication.
“I feel we have positively developed a way of understanding what the opposite one’s pondering in any given second,” he mentioned. “Generally, yeah, all it takes is a glance to know what is going on on.”
The offense created when McDavid and Draisaitl are on the ice does converse to one thing additional sensory between them.
Heading into Sport 3 of the Stanley Cup Last on Monday evening, McDavid and Draisaitl have now factored on the identical objective 73 instances within the playoffs. There are solely three duos in NHL historical past which have factored in on the identical objective extra usually:
In 43 video games over the previous two postseasons, Edmonton has scored 21 objectives with McDavid and Draisaitl on the ice at 5-on-5, a fee of 4.4 objectives per 60 minutes. When neither of them are on the ice, the Oilers have a 2.03 objectives per 60 minutes fee at 5-on-5 of their previous 43 video games — though it must be famous that this season’s supporting solid has that fee as much as 2.71 objectives per 60 within the workforce’s previous 18 video games.
This postseason, McDavid and Draisaitl have an anticipated objectives fee of 66.4%; when neither of them are on the ice at 5-on-5, the remainder of the Oilers earn 49.6% of the anticipated objectives, in accordance with Pure Stat Trick. When Messier and Gretzky had been teammates, the Oilers hardly ever put them on the identical line.
“No, we performed on separate traces for essentially the most half. The ability play, at instances, however not on a regular basis,” Messier mentioned. “I centered the second line, and it was one of many the explanation why we grew to become so laborious to play towards.”
McDavid and Draisaitl have performed 167:04 collectively at 5-on-5 in 18 video games, greater than McDavid (158:43) and Draisaitl (150:06) have performed away from the opposite. Which is to say that coach Kris Knoblauch has not hesitated to unleash the “nuclear choice” on opponents this postseason, uniting his two offensive wizards on the identical line.
“We have executed it all through the playoffs, and so they have simply gone off and scored at an amazing, super fee,” Knoblauch mentioned.
However the coach mentioned he is cognizant of the ripple results attributable to Draisaitl transferring to McDavid’s wing.
“Leon enjoying middle simply spreads out our scoring a bit of bit. It additionally will get him within the sport a bit of bit extra. He is skating and concerned,” Knoblauch mentioned. “I feel it additionally permits the remainder of our workforce figuring out that they have a job, they have to play effectively and we’re not simply counting on this one line that it may do all of the work.”
In fact, the Oilers are very happy to depend on McDavid and Draisaitl as linemates on the ability play. In 43 video games over the previous two postseasons, Edmonton has scored 34 objectives with each of them on the ice for an influence play. The Oilers have scored simply as soon as on the ability play with out McDavid and Draisaitl on the ice over the previous two postseasons.
Draisaitl has 22 profession power-play objectives in 92 video games, tying him for twenty ninth all time. Solely Hockey Corridor of Fame winger Cam Neely (25 in 93 video games) had extra objectives having performed fewer than 100 profession postseason video games. Draisaitl enters Sport 3 needing one power-play objective to tie Gretzky (23) for essentially the most in Oilers historical past — and it took The Nice One 120 video games to amass that whole.
Alex Ovechkin has the “Ovi Spot” on the ability play. Leon has “Drai Island”: Draisaitl now has 73 power-play objectives from the suitable circle on a one-timer within the common season and the playoffs for the reason that shot was first tracked in 2016-17. The subsequent-highest participant? Tampa Bay Lightning star Nikita Kucherov, manner again at 44 objectives.
McDavid stays Draisaitl’s greatest fan.
“You may’t put a quantity on it. He is invaluable. There’s so many good issues he does. You title it, he does it. And he would not get sufficient credit score for his defensive skills,” McDavid mentioned final week. “There’s not many — perhaps no person — higher.”
Draisaitl has 10 power-play objectives over the previous two Oilers playoff runs. McDavid had the first help on seven of them. That features his cross-ice feed to Draisaitl for the additional time winner in Sport 1 and that highlight-reel particular person effort to feed him for a objective in Sport 2 when McDavid deked Aleksander Barkov and Aaron Ekblad out of their respective skates:
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McDavid wizardry units up Draisaitl for Oilers objective
The Oilers take the lead for the second time after Connor McDavid’s sensational help to Leon Draisaitl.
These power-play helpers are one motive McDavid has moved up the ranks of essentially the most multi-assist video games in NHL postseason historical past. Heading into Sport 3, he has 33 profession multi-assist playoff video games, the third-most behind Oilers legends Gretzky (72) and Messier (40).
“They’re one of the best at nearly all elements of the sport,” Oilers winger Jeff Skinner mentioned. “They’re dominant each evening, and that offers them the boldness to maintain doing it.”
Which is to say that opponents, such because the Panthers, can solely hope to mitigate the injury that McDavid and Draisaitl will inevitably do.
IN GAME 1 of the Stanley Cup Last, Florida iced the puck 21 instances. Often, it was its fourth line that was responsible of the infraction. When that may occur and the Panthers had been pressured to take a faceoff again in their very own zone, Knoblauch would not hesitate to place McDavid and Draisaitl on the market collectively to prey on them.
When that occurred, Panthers fourth-line winger Jonah Gadjovich knew what to do — let another person deal with them as shortly as doable.
“Play laborious. Get off the ice as fast as you possibly can. Get the puck out and get off. That is what we’re making an attempt to do,” he mentioned.
Defending McDavid is difficult. Defending McDavid and Draisaitl is terrifying, even for Barkov, thought of one of the best defensive ahead within the NHL.
“You simply need to know that they are on the ice. You may have to concentrate on all of them the instances. You need to know a bit of little bit of their tendencies as effectively,” mentioned Barkov, a three-time winner of the Selke Trophy, together with this season. “However on the similar time, it is 5 guys on ice. It isn’t only one. So 5 guys have to know you must know the place they’re and take the time and house away from it.”
That is one thing Panthers defenseman Seth Jones echoed.
“Once they play collectively, they’re clearly very artistic gamers and so they make everybody round them higher. They wish to search for one another, particularly after they play collectively. Little give-and-goes, issues like that,” he mentioned. “Whether or not they’re enjoying collectively or aside, it is a five-man unit, defending holdups, little issues like that, simply being bodily on them goes to assist us on the finish of the day.”
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Draisaitl comes up massive with OT winner in Sport 1
Leon Draisaitl nets the successful objective late in additional time to assist the Oilers take Sport 1 of the Stanley Cup Last.
However the Panthers aren’t enjoying the identical McDavid and Draisaitl from final postseason. Each gamers had been removed from 100% in 2024, having performed 13 playoff video games within the final two rounds earlier than the Stanley Cup Last. This time, they’re wholesome and rested, having performed 10 video games in these rounds in two straight five-game collection wins.
Each gamers have talked about how the postseason journey in 2024 modified them, specifically with their psychological method to this season’s Last. McDavid has talked about being extra “snug” than final time, with the second time round feeling extra regular.
Oilers ahead Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who has been a linemate for each McDavid and Draisaitl in his profession, praised their psychological toughness.
“It speaks to their degree of competitiveness, which is so spectacular on a day-to-day foundation that it pushes you,” he mentioned. “They’re two of essentially the most gifted gamers that we have in all probability ever seen within the sport, however there must be greater than that, and these guys have that. They’re so aggressive. They need to win so dangerous.”
The numbers definitely again that up.
