There has been a lot of chatter about Leon Draisaitl's future over the summer. The Edmonton Oilers lost game seven of the Stanley Cup Final by one goal and it is still the thing people talked about the most.
Draisaitl was entering the final year of his contract coming into 2024-25 but that is not the case anymore. On Tuesday, we learned that Draisaitl and the Oilers have agreed to an extension.
It is an eight-year deal with an average annual value of $14 million. That makes him the highest-paid player in the NHL on a per-year basis.
This is a wonderful deal for both the Oilers and the player. Daisaitl is a sensational talent and he is now being compensated as well as any player ever. He deserves this. He should be very proud of the life and career that his talent has earned for him.
The Edmonton Oilers and Leon Draisaitl have agreed to an extension
As for the Oilers, they are keeping one of the best players in the world in their sweater. Leon Daisaitl and Connor McDavid for the best duo in the NHL and the Oilers get to cherish it for a very long time.
What makes Daisaitl so good? Well, people think of him and his multiple 50-goal seasons which paint the picture of a goal scorer. The fact that he is one of the best passers in the NHL as well makes him one of the best offensive threats in the league.
He is fast, skates hard, has a nose for the net, and can find anyone with a perfect pass. Only his teammate McDavid may be better at some of those things when comparing Draisaitl to other NHL players from around the world.
Winning in the playoffs is also very important to Draisaitl. He has elevated his game even further in every playoff he's found himself in. He is already one of the most prolific scorers in Stanley Cup Playoff history.
If Edmonton wanted to win the Stanley Cup multiple times over the next handful of years, they needed to get this done. Leon Draisaitl helps any team reach the playoffs and he gets even better once those games begin.
The worry of him leaving will now evade Oilers fans. The next order of business will be extending Connor McDavid but this Draisaitl deal has to make people feel more confident in that happening. If the Oilers play their cards right, they could be very good for a very long time.