The latest stats, fantasy news, video and more of players in the National Hockey League. Skater Statistics for the 201617 NHL season. The third of John Woos Americanmade feature films, FaceOff stars John Travolta as Sean Archer, an FBI agent obsessed with capturing Castor Troy Nicolas Cage, a. Entering this season, Leon Draisaitl was a player with an odd mix of positives and negatives on his NHL resume. At his best, he brought to mind Anze Kopitara big. Leon Draisaitls Near Perfect 2. Season OILERSNATIONEntering this season, Leon Draisaitl was a player with anodd mix of positives and negatives on his NHL resume. At his best, he broughtto mind Anze Kopitara big forward with a nice mix of power, speed, and bothoffensive and defensive ability. Yet he was also prone to long offensiveslumps, particularly when away from Taylor Hall. In the first half of 2. Faceoff Season 3 Joe' title='Faceoff Season 3 Joe' />Draisaitl has done everythingpossible to allay concerns about his game. Writing for the Edmonton. Journallastsummer, I broke down what I saw as warning signs this way. But he did fade badly down the stretch, and thatcombined with a lousy rookie performance should absolutely inject some cautioninto the discussion. So too should the fact that without Hall this year hescored at Lauri Korpikoski levels. While were at it, its probably not a badidea to mention Draisaitls 1. AHL stint. We cant really address the. The first item on the list above is Taylor Hall. Draisaitland Hall clicked marvelously sometimes with Teddy Purcell, sometimes with Ryan. Nugent Hopkins last season, and given Halls offensive history it wasdebatable which player was driving the line. This season, Draisaitl has played entirely without Hall. Hesspent some time at centre, mostly between Jesse Puljujarvi and Patrick Maroon,and hes spent more time at right wing on the Connor Mc. David line. Mc. David isan elite talent, so its worth isolating Draisaitls performance withand without the superstar forward at 5 on 5 with Mc. David 2. 02 minutes, seven points, 2. Mc. David 4. 24 minutes, 1. Thats the smallest drop off of any of Mc. Watch Broadcast News Streaming. Davids regularlinemates, and in a year where the Oilers have struggled to generate secondaryscoring Draisaitl has been the exception. Hes been productive, and hes beenproductive anchoring his own line, which is the sign of a player who can driveresults in his own right. Draisaitls big shooting percentage spike last season isinteresting, too. At 5 on 5, his shooting percentage has fallen offconsiderablyfrom over 1. A9. 8 shooting percentage is still quite strong, though, and reinforces the ideathat his rookie year was the aberration. Additionally, Draisaitls overall shooting percentage hasactually increased thanks to an increased role on the power play his eightgoals on the man advantage are already a career high. One of the advantages ofhaving him play on the Mc. David line rather than anchoring a second unit is thatit keeps the power play units harmonious with the even strength lines, somethingwhich makes a coachs life much easier. As long as hes on that top unit, ahigh power play shooting percentage seems entirely sustainable. This additional confirmation that Draisaitls offensive gameis for real just adds one more facet to a player who was already strong inother areas. Draisaitls shot metrics CorsiFenwick have been excellent alldown the line. His size and speed make him a good fit for a variety oflinemateshe can play a cycling game with big forwards and a rush game with thespeedsters. His addition to the penalty kill isnt a big surprise given hisjunior history, but is yet another indication of a player who gets the job donein his own end of the rink. This should give the Oilers the confidence to extend. Draisaitl long term, but its possible that the team pursues a bridge dealanyway. Draisaitl is still five seasons away from unrestricted free agency, soa two or three year deal at a relatively modest cap hit could give Edmonton maximumfinancial flexibility in the short term while still allowing the club to lockhim up to a long term pact later on. All down the line there has been reason to scrutinize. Draisaitls place on the Oilers. On draft day, there was fierce online debateover whether Draisaitl or Sam Bennett was the superior pick. His disappointingrookie campaign only increased doubts. Even last year, it was fair to debatehis play both away from Hall and down the stretch, to question his overall offensive upside. Draisaitls work this season has done a superb job of silencing such concerns. Looking back at the list I put together this summer, I find myself marveling at how each point has been checked off during a brilliant first half. Obviously he needs to keep playing well, but if Id scripted a perfect breakthrough season for the player the first 4. Draisaitls done so far.