Another season without a Stanley Cup title is another wasted year of having Connor McDavid for the Edmonton Oilers, and Leon Draisaitl is very much aware of that.
Draisaitl made that clear when he assessed Edmonton’s outlook following the team’s early exit from the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
“In what world do you have the best player in the world on your team and you’re not looking to win,” Draisaitl told reporters on Saturday, via Ryan S. Clark of ESPN.
Draisaitl seems to feel now more than ever that the Oilers are running out of time to win the Cup with McDavid.
“I know we’re looking to win, but we need to be better. We have to be better. There’s no way around it. We have to improve. He’s signed for two more years, and God knows where that goes,” added the former Hart Memorial Trophy winner.
“But we have two years here right now. As of right now, we have two years. We have to get significantly better.”
After making the Stanley Cup Final in each of the last two seasons and coming so close to raising the Cup, the Oilers took a big step back, as they exited in the first round of the 2026 playoffs. Despite another great individual season from McDavid, they were shown the door by the Anaheim Ducks after six games in the opening round.
The 8-year, $100 million contract extension that McDavid signed in 2017 is about to expire in the summer. He signed a 2-year, $25 million extension with Edmonton in 2025, giving the Oilers additional time to find a way to reach the top of the league with McDavid, who led the NHL with 138 points in the 2025-26 season to capture his sixth Art Ross Trophy.
