US-Sport compact Draisaitl propels Oilers into the playoffs with a hat trick
Düsseldorf · While most Europeans are asleep, the North American professional leagues are buzzing. What Happened That Night in American Football, Basketball, and Ice Hockey.
Leon Draisaitl (r) is congratulated by his teammates.
Photo: dpa/Jason Franson
Hockey: 50 goals – Draisaitl leads Oilers to playoffs with hat trick
Hockey star Leon Draisaitl has hit the 50-goal mark with a hat-trick and led his Edmonton Oilers to the playoffs of the professional league NHL. After the gala of the German national player in the 6-0 win against the Anaheim Ducks, the Canadians have secured their place in the championship round with five main round games remaining.
Draisaitl scored to make it 2-0 (23rd), outnumbered to make it 4-0 (32nd) and outnumbered to make it 4-0 (56th). Born in Cologne, he was the first Oilers player to score 30 power play hits in a season. The 27-year-old scored 50 goals for the third time after 2018/19 and 2021/22. Edmonton has now reached the postseason four times in a row.
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Photo: dpa/-
“I was probably a bit too selfish in the third period and shot from everywhere,” said Draisaitl with a smile on the hunt for goal number 50: “I didn’t think it would work outnumbered, but I’ll take it.” It’s great that it worked out differently than in his previous two 50s in his own hall, “I’m very proud and happy”. Fellow striker Connor McDavid praised the performance as “really, really impressive”.
Meanwhile, Tim Stützle suffered a setback in the playoff race with the Ottawa Senators in a 3-0 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs. On the other hand, John-Jason Peterka and his Buffalo Sabers improved their chances with a 6:3 at the Philadelphia Flyers. Peterka remained without a scorer point.
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Photo: AP/Ashley Landis
Nico Sturm defeated the Arizona Coyotes 7-2 with the San Jose Sharks. The Stanley Cup champion recorded two assists. Lukas Reichel scored his sixth goal of the season but lost 6-3 with the Chicago Blackhawks to the New Jersey Devils. Goalie Thomas Greiss went down 6-1 with the St. Louis Blues at the Nashville Predators but saved 29 of 35 shots.
Buffalo is four points behind the last wildcard spot in the east, with Ottawa six. San Jose and Chicago have long been out of the running in the West, St. Louis only has arithmetical chances.
Basketball: Dallas also loses in Miami – playoff chance is dwindling
The Dallas Mavericks are in danger of missing the playoffs in the North American professional basketball league NBA. The team around superstar Luka Doncic and the German national player Maxi Kleber lost 122:129 (64:76) at the Miami Heat on Saturday (local time) and has now lost six of the last seven games.
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Photo: AP/Charles Krupa
Although Doncic shone offensively with 42 points, ten rebounds and eight assists, the Mavericks also had a strong throw rate of 61 percent. However, as recently, the team showed weaknesses on the defensive. “Non-existent,” she called coach Jason Kidd, “we couldn’t stop her.” Miami’s Jimmy Butler scored 35 points and played 12 assists. Kleber had eight points, five rebounds and three assists.
The win further secured Miami’s seventh-place finish in the Eastern Conference, putting them in the best position for the play-in tournament for the playoffs. Sixth place and thus direct entry is still within reach. Teams ranked seventh through tenth will play out two more playoff spots.
For Dallas, on the other hand, it is now only about qualifying for the play-in tournament. The Mavs (37-41) are currently in eleventh place in the Western Conference and have one win less than the Oklahoma City Thunder, who, however, also won the direct duel between the two teams. In seventh place are the New Orleans Pelicans (40-38), who won the night’s second NBA game against the Los Angeles Clippers 122-114. The Clippers, for whom Kawhi Leonard has 40 points, are sixth by one win over the Pelicans.