Elliotte Friedman clarifies Leon Draisaitl's return timeline after conflicting reports emerge
|
Jack Sutherland
Mar 22, 2026 (6:32 PM)
|
|
Photo credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
NHL analyst Elliotte Friedman has clarified the return timeline of Edmonton Oilers star Leon Draisaitl after conflicting reports emerged when he returned to his native Germany for treatment.
The Edmonton Oilers announced that star forward Leon Draisaitl is going to miss the rest of the regular season with an injury, and he has since returned to his native Germany to seek treatment.
He recently did an interview with a local German sports reporter and said that he's going to be out at least for a few weeks and also appeared to imply that he could potentially miss time in the playoffs.
It will definitely take a few weeks. I hope we go far enough so I can help the team again. - Leon Draisaitl
Now, NHL analyst Elliotte Friedman is clarifying Draisaitl's potential return timeline as being unchanged despite that interview, saying that he'll be out at least until the regular season ends.
He also pointed out that the doctor Draisaitl has seen is the same one in Germany that Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews traveled last season to see.
I recognize this interview caused about 1,000 heart attacks...but as I understand it, Draisaitl's current timeline has not changed. The expectation right now is he's out until the end of the regular season.This, by the way, is the same doctor Auston Matthews visited a year ago. - Elliotte Friedman
Leon Draisaitl Had Another Great Year For The Oilers
Draisaitl is done for the rest of the regular season, but his scoring touch hasn't been lost, clearly.
In the 65 games he played in, he had 97 points (35G, 62A), second of course only to his fellow co-star Connor McDavid, who is now shouldering extra responsibility now that Draisaitl is unavailable.
Can the Oilers get as high a seed as possible without him?
Also read on HockeyLatest :
Minnesota Wild media undergoes terrible tragedy with the Jessi Pierce passing
Minnesota Wild media undergoes terrible tragedy with the Jessi Pierce passing