Match winner in super comeback: "Incredible" Draisaitl grabs hold of the charging Panthers
Leon Draisaitl was the match winner for the Oilers.
(Photo: AP)
Thanks to a strong comeback and match-winner Leon Draisaitl, the Edmonton Oilers kept their Stanley Cup dream alive. In Game 4 of the final series against the Florida Panthers, the Oilers fell behind early, but then Draisaitl stepped up.
The Edmonton Oilers bounced back in the Stanley Cup finals thanks to Leon Draisaitl. The German ice hockey star scored in overtime in Game 4 against the Florida Panthers, giving them a 5-4 (0-3, 3-0, 1-1) victory. The Oilers thus leveled the best-of-seven series at 2-2. The first team to win four games is the champion of the North American NHL.
"It shows once again that our team never gives up," Draisaitl said after the game: "We don't want to get into these situations too often, but when they come, we're great at it."
Draisaitl had already scored the winning goal in overtime in the opening game; this time, the 29-year-old scored just over eleven minutes into the extra period. In NHL history, Draisaitl is only the third player to score two overtime goals in a playoff series. "He's one of the best players in the world," said teammate Vasily Podkolzin of Edmonton's match-winner. "He's incredible; we can always rely on him," added Ryan Nugent-Hopkins.
Oilers turn around 0-3 deficitThe Oilers managed to win despite trailing 3-0 after the first period. However, the visitors equalized in the second period with three goals in just under twelve minutes, with Draisaitl assisting Podkolzin to tie the game at 3-3. Edmonton even took the lead midway through the third period, but the Panthers rallied to force overtime with a goal 20 seconds before the end of the period.
There, Draisaitl once again emerged as the match winner, with three of the four games so far being decided in overtime. This has only happened four times in NHL Finals history. The series now returns to Edmonton, where the fifth game will take place on Saturday. Last year, Florida won the title in seven games.
Source: ntv.de, tno/dpa
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