Ice hockey star Leon Draisaitl and the Edmonton Oilers made a big statement shortly before the end of the regular season in the NHL, while Moritz Seider and the Detroit Wings are hoping to take part in the playoffs.
Edmonton rolled over Nico Sturm’s San Jose Sharks 9-2, with Draisaitl setting up the interim goal to make it 5-1. The Oilers are in fifth place in the Western Conference and have already booked their ticket to the play-offs.
Milestone for NHL star Connor McDavid
Meanwhile, Draisaitl’s teammate Connor McDavid reached a historic milestone. With his assist to make it 9-1 by Zach Hyman, the 27-year-old recorded his 100th goal assist of the season and entered an elite circle.
Before McDavid, only three players in NHL history had achieved 100 assists in a season: Bobby Orr and Mario Lemieux once each, and the legendary Wayne Gretzky eleven times, eight of them in a row in an Oilers jersey.
Moritz Seider can celebrate after extra time
Moritz Seider and the Detroit Red Wings can continue to dream of reaching the knockout rounds for the first time in eight years. Detroit won 5-4 after overtime against the Montreal Canadiens.
After falling behind 4-1 against the Michigan team, Detroit came back to win in overtime on Monday night. The celebrated man of the evening was Lucas Raymond, who scored the last two goals for the Red Wings and now has 30 goals this season.
No respite for Detroit
In the fight for the play-offs, Detroit (89 points) will face the Canadiens again on Wednesday night. Seider and Co. have to win and hope for a defeat by the Washington Capitals (89) at the Philadelphia Flyers in order to secure the second wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference.
If Detroit loses, the Flyers could also reach the knockout rounds with a win. The Pittsburgh Penguins can also still have slight hopes for the postseason.
JJ Peterka and the Buffalo Sabers won 4-2 at the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Sabers can no longer reach the play-offs.