Leon Draisaitl becomes fifth-fastest European NHL player to hit 900-point milestone
Leon Draisaitl’s dominant NHL career continued Thursday night with a three-assist performance against the Boston Bruins, becoming the fifth-fastest European player to hit the 900-point mark in NHL history.
Draisaitl did so by helping set up Zach Hyman for the Edmonton Oilers’ first goal, Connor McDavid for the game-tying goal late in the third period, and Mattias Ekholm’s game-winner just over a minute into overtime. The Oilers were able to erase a two-goal deficit in doing so, securing another big win.
“It feels good (to hit that milestone),” said Drasiatl after Thursday’s game. “It’s a hard league and you learn a lot along the way. Every day you truly learn something new. I’m proud of myself. You can’t get to those milestones without teammates and guys trusting you, coaches trusting you.
“Big, big thank you goes out to everyone that helped along the way.”
The only European players who hit 900 points faster than Draisaitl, who did so in his 751st game, are Nikita Kucherov (743 games), Jaromir Jagr (681), Jari Kurri (632) and Peter Stastny (599).
Fewest games to 900 points among European NHL players
Peter Stastny 599
Jari Kurri 632
Jaromir Jagr 681
Nikita Kucherov 743
Leon Draisaitl 751 (Thanks to a 3-point night)#LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/IyzHwEfAb5
— Sportsnet Stats (@SNstats) December 20, 2024
Draisaitl sits 22nd all-time in scoring by European players, and has a long way to go to catch Jagr, the highest-scoring European player in NHL history, who racked up 1921 points in his 1733 career games. Of all the players ahead of Draisaitl, only two have had higher career point per game averages than his 1.2: Kucherov, with 1.22, and Peter Stastny (1.27).
Up to 23 goals and 50 points on the season, Draisaitl is now on pace for 128 points this season, which would tie his career high from the 2021-22 campaign. That would move him up to 20th all-time for points among European players, springboarding him over Henrik Zetterberg, though he finds himself neck-in-neck with Kucherov, who has scored 14 goals and 49 points in 28 games this season.
Draisaitl’s play has expanded well beyond the offensive zone, though, as his defensive game has evolved in recent years and hit another level this season.
Among 57 centres with over 500 minutes at five-on-five this season, Draisaitl’s per hour numbers rank: third in shot attempts against, 11th in scoring chances against, first in high-danger chances against, 14th in goals against, and ninth in expected goals against.
Couple that with his usually strong offensive metrics, and Draisaitl is starting to put together a case to win multiple awards at the season’s end.
Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist, making up one-half of the DFO DFS Report. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at [email protected].
This article is presented by Deloitte Canada
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