BLOG: Oilers commend Draisaitl on 50-goal milestone

SAN JOSE, CA - Leon Draisaitl lifted his hands to the sky to celebrate recording his second-career 50-goal season, and so too did his Oilers teammates.
In the selfless self-examination by the German, he's a product of the players whom he gets to share the ice with.
"I'm proud. I'm very happy about it, no question," Draisaitl said following Sunday's 6-1 win over the Ducks. "But it also shows how great my teammates are. They're the ones that put me in these situations, they're the ones that get me the puck in the right moments, and we have such a selfless group out there. It's just fun to be a part of."
In their post-game comments and post-practice interviews since Draisaitl officially marked his second-career season with a half-century for goals, players and coaches close to the German could do nothing but turn the praise right back towards him and applaud the incredible ability of a teammate who is constantly pushing the bar higher for both himself and the Oilers.
"Unbelievable. He's just a workhorse out there," goaltender Mike Smith said. "He's an incredible athlete, and obviously, he's a huge part of our team's success... For him to score 50 goals in this league is a special feat, so it couldn't have happened to a better guy. He drives the pace for us and is huge on the powerplay, but he's a special player to play with and a better guy too."

When Draisaitl dropped to one knee in the third period and one-timed the 50th goal of his season into the back of the Anaheim net from the right circle, there was a collective lift of anticipation from his teammates on the ice and on the bench when the moment finally came.
"We obviously knew where he was at, so every time he would get a good look at the net we were holding our breath a little bit hoping it would go in," Nugent-Hopkins said. "Kulak made a great pass to him and found him in his trademark spot. You give Leon a shot like that and he's going to put it in nine times out of 10, so we were pretty fired up on the bench and I think he was obviously pretty happy with it squeaking in there."
The Oilers had a four-goal lead prior to the puck crossing the line with just under four minutes left in Sunday's win in Anaheim, but the scoreline wasn't going to temper the boisterous reactions that followed.
"We obviously all knew he was sitting on 49 there," McDavid, the other half of the Dynamic Duo, said on Monday. "It's a 5-1 game and his goal makes it 6-1, and our bench kind of went crazy for him which normally wouldn't have happened in a 6-1 game. But it just goes to show what he means to our group and what that accomplishment means not only for him, but for everyone around him. It's a special thing, and I know we're all really happy for him."

Not only is the feat impressive in itself, but the manner in which he did it was also stunning. It took the German only 70 games to reach the milestone, becoming only the third active player with Alex Ovechkin and Steven Stamkos to record two 50-goal seasons.
"To do it in, what was it, 70 games too?" Evander Kane said. "You're pretty much scoring every night, so to have that type of consistency through the course of the season and for it to be his second time around, it's really impressive.
"I definitely see a few more 50-goal seasons for him with how he finishes."
For Head Coach Jay Woodcroft, behind Draisaitl's drive to 50 goals and 100 points is a determination to channel that offensive prowess into on-ice success for the Oilers.
"Heck of an achievement. It's so special to score 50 goals, and so special to hit the century mark on the points," he said.
"I said this about Connor when he hit the 100-point plateau -- I know Leon is driven to get our team to 100 points. That's what motivates him, and he did a lot of good things on the ice [Sunday]. I was happy to see him get both of those late in the game."