Leon Draisaitl in San Jose: a scenario discussed for over a year

As you may know, Leon Draisaitl is an excellent hockey player. Or so the rumor goes.

All joking aside, it’s clear from the start of the playoffs just how dominant he is. He’s arguably the best player in the series, even though he’s been playing through injury for the past few games.

Yesterday, he collected two points, bringing his total to 20 in nine games. He’s leading the NHL right now.

The problem? The Oilers, who have made it past the second round only once under Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, are likely to lose one of the two players soon.

And I’m not talking about McJesus here. It’s still early days, but from what we understand, no one seems to see him leaving Alberta.

In fact, Leon Draisaitl could, according to rumors, want to do what Evgeni Malkin has always refused to do: want to be a team’s first center by playing elsewhere.

Basically, it was Edmonton insider Georges Laraque who reported that the player would like to play with the Boston Bruins. He also added this in reference to the German.

The guy wants to be first center on a team […] The fate of the team this year will determine what happens with him. – Georges Laraque

Laraque said this on April 30, when the Oilers were still in the first round. Would beating the Canucks in the second round be enough to make him want to stay in town?

Because yes, in just over 13 months, if Draisaitl hasn’t signed a new contract, he’ll be as free as a bird. He is eligible to sign a contract extension as early as July 1, 2024.

If the Oilers feel Draisaitl wants out, will they trade him? They might.

And on that subject, if he does change teams, it looks like the… Sharks will be one to watch. Greg Wyshynski (ESPN) reported on Jeff Marek’s show that there’s a lot of talk in the industry about the Sharks and Draisaitl. And Marek didn’t deny it, mentioning that the talk has been going on for over a year.

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The #1 reason behind all this? It seems to be the fact that the Sharks’ owner is also German. I get that it’s cool for him, but signing there just for that?

Obviously, there’s no way the Sharks would go after him this summer. After all, the club doesn’t need him right now, and I think discussions would start with the Oilers’ first overall pick. San Jose can’t trade Macklin Celebrini, we agree.

If he does, it will probably be in 2025, as a free agent. Of course, by then, he may have signed for the long term, in Edmonton or elsewhere… à la Pierre-Luc Dubois, of course.

Obviously, Draisaitl would be the Sharks’ first center, he’d be well paid… but if the reason for his potential departure from the Oilers is that he doesn’t like his chances of winning in Edmonton, let’s say he’d take 15 steps back in San Jose, which in my eyes is the farthest club from the Cup in 2024.

The club may have Will Smith and have the first pick of 2024, but at the end of the day, the Sharks still have big short-term financial commitments and big holes through the hockey organizational chart.

If he goes to San Jose on a long-term contract, it’s clearly for the money, we all agree on that?

In bunches

– I was talking about it yesterday: it’s possible.

– Interesting.

– Clearly.

– He wants to go.

– Who will be the goalie for game #5?