While Edmonton Oilers forward Connor McDavid deserves all the praise in the world for reaching 1,000 career points, he wouldn’t have been able to do it without the help of Leon Draisaitl.
The duo of McDavid and Draisaitl has instilled terror in teams and fan bases across the NHL for years now, as they are always near the league leaderboards — if not in the top two spots — when it comes to scoring. In fact, McDavid’s 745 points over the past seven seasons is first among all players, while Draisaitl’s 665 is second.
Though it’s changed in more recent years, the two often played on a line together early on in their careers, and as a result, helped contribute a ton to one another’s goals. Even now while being on different lines, they often still manage to hit the scoresheet together thanks to their great work on the power play.
A stat last night following McDavid’s 1,000th point helped prove just how detrimental they are towards each other’s success.
Though Draisaitl saw some NHL action in 2014-15, his first full season came a year later, which happened to be McDavid’s rookie campaign. Since then, he has been a part of 446 of the same goals as the Oilers captain.
The exciting news for Oilers fans is that the historic run these two have been on for nearly a decade may not be coming to an end any time soon. Draisaitl committed long-term to the organization this past offseason by inking an eight-year, $112 million deal, and McDavid has the opportunity to sign a similar extension next summer.
Should McDavid sign an extension as many expect him to, he may have a real chance at reaching the 2,000-point barrier.