21-year-old striker from the Edmonton Oilers overtakes his current national coach / Sturm: “German ice hockey can be proud.”
National player Leon Draisaitl was the first German player since Marco Sturm to set a new record on the night from Thursday to Friday: the 7-year-old striker set his own record with his two assists and the goal in his Edmonton Oilers' 4-21 win over the Bosten Bruins Scorer points number 59, 60 and 61 and after 70 main round game days he now has a total of 24 goals and 37 assists.
The previous record for a German player in the NHL was set by Draisaitl's current national coach Marco Sturm (59 points scorer) in the 2005/2006 season wearing the jersey of the San José Sharks and the Boston Bruins. Ex-NHL professional Jochen Hecht (Buffalo Sabres; 2006/2007) had 56 points scorer in his best NHL season.
“I am very happy about this brand. I am of course honored by the comparison with Marco Sturm or Jochen Hecht, but regardless of the scorer points, they have delivered outstanding performances in the NHL over the years. I am not that far yet. But I will give everything to continue to perform and help my team,” said the Cologne native.
National coach Marco Sturm: “I’m happy that Leon is having such a great season. He will probably surpass Jochen and me in scoring points more often in his career. German ice hockey can be proud to be able to see such a talented player in the NHL for a long time.”