Despite Draisaitl gala, Oilers threatens to be shut down

Leon Draisaitl scores two goals in the Edmonton Oilers’ game against the Chicago Blackhawks and puts up another goal. That’s not enough to win.

Despite an outstanding performance by national hockey player Leon Draisaitl, the Edmonton Oilers are on the brink of elimination in the NHL qualifying round.

The Canadians lost 3-4 to the Chicago Blackhawks with two goals in the final third and are now 2-1 down in the best-of-five series. Draisaitl himself scored twice in his own hall and put his congenial strike partner Connor McDavid on the scoresheet for the interim 3-2 draw.

Oilers need two wins
The Oilers will need two consecutive wins over the Blackhawks to avoid an early exit. Friday night is the fourth game. The winner of the series moves on to the last sixteen of the playoffs.

Tom Kühnhackl and Thomas Greiss had already awarded the first match point for the play-off move with the New York Islanders. Against the Florida Panthers, the Islanders lost 2:3 in Toronto, but are now 2:1 ahead. On Friday, the Islanders will be able to prevent a decisive fifth match in their fourth game and move into the round of sixteen.

Again without defender Korbinian Holzer, the Nashville Predators lost 4-1 to the Arizona Coyotes and are already under pressure with a 2-1 deficit in the series. Due to the Corona Pandemic, the NHL has decided to hold a shortened season final in tournament form in the Canadian cities of Edmonton and Toronto.