“Leon could have had about five in the second period the amount of chances he had,” coach Kris Knoblauch said about Leon Draisaitl. And he wasn’t wrong. Utah Hockey Club struggled in vain as the Edmonton Oilers smashed goal after goal in a 7-1 display of dominance. However, despite the Oiler’s massive win, one of the team’s most consistent players didn’t register a point.

Generally, no one would’ve batted an eye if one player had a point-less game when your team won the match 7-1. But besides being a high-scoring victory for the Oilers, their clash against Utah was no ordinary game. That’s because the Oilers’ center’s historic point-scoring run came to an end against UHC. NBC Boston’s DJ Bean noted how Utah seemed determined to stop Draisaitl.

“Credit to Utah. They’re getting the absolute bag beaten out of them, but they will NOT Leon Draisaitl extend his streak,” Bean wrote on X. Draisaitl had already entered the history books, becoming the fourth player to have an 18-point scoring streak. This put the German star in the same league as Wayne Gretzky, Paul Coffey, and Jari Kurri.

Okay. Okay. Wayne Gretzky is in a league of his own. After all, he hit the 18 consecutive points milestone eight times with the Oilers. His highest points streak also seems untouchable at 51-points. Yet, just even a point would’ve put Draisaitl ahead of Jari Kurri. Unfortunately, Draisaitl couldn’t climb higher.

However, despite the disappointment for the German NHL star, coach Kris Knoblauch could only praise him. “But just true character, some players score when it doesn’t matter,” said the 46-year-old. “You look at the streak and Leon has done none of that… Many nights he’s the only guy on the scoresheet,” added the coach, praising Leon Draisaitl’s consistency on the ice. Kris Knoblauch also looked beyond the NHL star’s achievement, commenting on the Oilers’ performance.

Leon Draisaitl’s team handed Utah a historic defeat

Besides praising the Oilers star, Kris Knoblauch also seemed happy with how his team has been playing for the last three games. The win against UHC put the Edmonton Oilers on a three-game win streak.

“Tonight, the way we were backchecking, creating turnovers, countering, so you know, we’ve been getting better over these last couple of weeks,” explained the coach.

Yet, just because he was pleased with the team doesn’t mean Knoblauch is satisfied. “Certainly more room to grow,” the head coach added during the post-game interview. However, Leon Draisaitl and Co. didn’t just play better on the ice, they handed the Utah Hockey Club the worst loss in the franchise’s history. Yes, UHC has never lost a game by such a massive margin since their inception.

Needless to say, the emotions in the Utah camp were completely opposite to that of the Oilers. However, many thought the NHL team only had themselves to blame. UHC beat reporter Brogan Houston commented on the match on X. “I don’t know the last time I saw this many breakaways in a game,” wrote the journalist. Unfortunately, Utah couldn’t capitalize.

Yet, the Utah players are looking to put this loss behind them. “Wins or losses, you’ve got to be able to move on,” said goalscorer Sean Durzi. “The sun’s going to come up. (We’ve) got to wake up and be ready for the next one. We can’t afford to sulk. Can’t afford to lose confidence in this room,” added the defenceman. However, only time will tell if the aftermath of losing against Leon Draisaitl and Co. will linger at UHC.