Darren Dreger Predicts Difficulty For Oilers To Sign Leon Draisaitl

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Dawson McKenzie
March 22, 2024 (2:38 PM)

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NHL insider Darren Dreger recently predicted that the Edmonton Oilers are going to have difficulty when trying to resign Leon Draisaitl this coming off-season.

Leon Draisaitl will be one of the most coveted free agents if the Edmonton Oilers let him get to that point. With his incredible past performances including a Hart Trophy in 2020, Leon Draisaitl is set to have a massive payday with his next contract.

While it is hard for Oilers fans to picture Leon Draisaitl leaving the team, insider Darren Dreger is predicting that the Oilers will have a harder time re-signing him than they previously thought.

Darren Dreger doesn't think Draisaitl will sign right away on July 1st in Edmonton.

«I think this could be fascinating to see how it plays out and drags on»

Leon Draisaitl is open for an extension on his contract starting July 1st. However, if Darren Dreger thinks things could drag on, this could leave Draisaitl coming back to the team next season without an extension.

We saw what can happen to the value of a contract if a player is playing well during their contract year in Toronto for William Nylander. Nylander came into the season negotiating around the 9 million dollar AAV mark and played himself into a whopping 11.5 million dollar AAV.

Leon Draisaitl could play himself out of the Oilers' price range if it gets to that point.

The last thing the Oilers need is for Leon Draisaitl to drive up the value of what will already be a top-end contract. This is especially true as they look into the future, eyeing Connor McDavid's contract negotiation coming up quickly. Although the cap is set to increase, they will still need every dollar they can get in order to secure two of the top players in the NHL.

Hopefully, for Oilers fans, they can have playoff success in the time they have both Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid locked down under contract. That is, if they can get over their anger regarding the Oilers playoff ticket pricing.

As seen on Blade of Steel. - "Insider believes Draisaitl, Oilers negotiations will hit a snag"