Home Edmonton Oilers Edmonton Oilers announce Leon Draisaitl to miss remainder of regular season with lower-body injury

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Mar 18, 2026

Edmonton Oilers announce Leon Draisaitl to miss remainder of regular season with lower-body injury

The Edmonton Oilers announced that center Leon Draisaitl sustained a lower-body injury during the first period of a game against the Nashville Predators and is expected to miss the rest of the regular season.

Draisaitl took a bump from Nashville forward Ozzy Wiesblatt and did not return to the contest, which the Oilers won.[1][2]

The team has not confirmed whether Draisaitl will be available for the playoffs.

The Oilers later defeated the San Jose Sharks.

Head coach Kris Knoblauch said after the Sharks game: "No one's going to replace Leon. That's never going to happen. But everyone collectively needs to be a little bit better."[3]

Leon Draisaitl, a 29-year-old center from Germany, has played his entire NHL career with the Edmonton Oilers since being drafted third overall in 2014.[1][4]

He won the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player for the 2019-20 season and finished as runner-up in the 2022-23 season.[4][5]

Draisaitl plays alongside captain Connor McDavid on the Oilers, who reached the Stanley Cup Final in 2024 before losing to the Florida Panthers in six games.[6][7]

Kris Knoblauch has served as Oilers head coach since November 2023.[1]

The Oilers compete in the Pacific Division of the NHL's Western Conference. The regular season is followed by the Stanley Cup playoffs.[1]