No. 29 thanked his teammates for their support in reaching 100 points for the sixth time in his career but was just happy to see two points in the bank for the Oilers, who’ve played five straight one-goal games and struggled to find results in recent games after scoring three goals or less in 10 of their last 11 games (3-8-0).
“Obviously, we've been struggling and we've been struggling to score,” he said. “We've been struggling to defend hard and put points in the bank, and I thought for the most part tonight we were really good.”
Connor McDavid assisted Draisaitl’s decisive winner and is enjoying a 10-game assist streak and point streak of two goals and 12 assists, while another helper for Evan Bouchard gives him a seven-game point streak of four goals and four assists.
The Rangers come into Sunday's matchup on the second of back-to-back games after blanking the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-0 to take over the second Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference. It was their eighth shutout of the season, which leads the NHL along with their eight back-to-backs since Jan. 1.
Artemi Panarin extended his point streak to eight games (6G, 6A), and two goals for Vincent Trocheck gives the centre 20 goals on the season. Trocheck’s second goal was the 14th shorthanded goal by New York this season, which leads the NHL as well.
Following Igor Shesterkin's 21-save shutout, Edmonton is expected to face Jonathan Quick in the second of the back-to-back where the Rangers are 5-1-1 since the start of 2025. Quick owns the most wins against the Oilers among active NHL goalies and a 25-13-6 record (2.27 GAA, .918 SV%, 4 SO) against them.