Draisaitl: Hitting 50-goal mark 'means a lot to me'

Leon Draisaitl hit the 50-goal plateau for the fourth time in seven seasons Saturday night in an important win over the rival Calgary Flames, and the feat isn't lost on the Edmonton Oilers superstar.

"I grew up as, well, certainly not a goal scorer," Draisaitl said, per Sportsnet's Mark Spector. "Always been a passer, and I worked a lot at (the scoring) part of my game. For that to shine through still means a lot to me."

Draisaitl notched his league-leading 50th tally on a late equalizer in the third period, then buried his 51st in overtime. He's on track to win the first Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy of his career and ranks third in points (104).

"There aren't many pass-first, consistent 50-goal scorers," defenseman Darnell Nurse joked. "He's one."

Since Draisaitl's first 50-goal campaign in 2018-19, he's tied with Auston Matthews for the most goals in the NHL (323) in 43 extra games. Over the same span, his 747 points rank second behind only teammate Connor McDavid.

Draisaitl's fourth 50-goal season tied Hall of Famer Jari Kurri for the second most in franchise history. Wayne Gretzky leads the way in that department with eight across his nine seasons in Edmonton.

The Oilers tied the second-place Los Angeles Kings with 89 points thanks to Draisaitl's heroics, but have played one extra game. The two clubs are currently slated to face each other in the first round of the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year.