Draisaitl hailed as hero during homecoming with Oilers at Global Series

COLOGNE, Germany --They saved the best for last. Their native son.

First came the starting lineup of Kolner Haie of the Deutche Eishockey League, the Cologne Sharks of the German Ice Hockey League in English. Then came the starting lineup of the Edmonton Oilers, culminating in this:
"No. 29," the public address announcer said. "Leon …"
"DRAISAITL!" the fans shouted.
The 22-year-old center tried to stay as stoic as usual, but he cracked a smile and raised his stick to salute the fans when they cheered his name.
"It was pretty special obviously," Draisaitl said. "I'm used to that from the German fans. They for some reason love to yell out the last name, really loud. It was awesome. It was a great experience and I just hope everyone enjoyed it."

Draisaitl had an assist, setting up countryman Tobias Rieder for the first goal, and the Oilers won 4-3 in overtime before a sellout crowd of 18,400 at Lanxess Arena on Wednesday. The preseason game, part of the 2018 Global Series Challenge, was the first NHL event in Cologne.
"There's moments that happen in the game where the hair goes up on your neck," Oilers coach Todd McLellan said. "You know a very unique thing is happening here. For me, that [introduction] was a moment for Leon, for his dad, for his hometown. I felt it and I'm sure Leon felt it as well."
Draisatil was born here Oct. 27, 1995, while his father, Peter, played for the Sharks. He grew up watching them, trains with them in the offseason and has three of his best friends on the team. His father now coaches them. His father watches each Oilers game; he watches each Sharks game too.
After standing for the Canadian anthem like he does before Oilers games, Draisaitl got the chance to stand for the German anthem on home ice. He lined up for the ceremonial face-off against Mortiz Muller, who has played for the Sharks for 16 seasons, has known Draisaitl since he was a kid and has played with him on Germany's national team.
Marco Sturm, general manager of Germany and the leading German scorer in NHL history (487 points; 242 goals, 245 assists in 938 games), dropped the puck. Draisaitl drew it back and picked it up. He is sixth among German players in the NHL with 207 points (75 goals, 132 assists) in 269 games. It was like a passing of the torch.
"He's a special kid," Sturm said. "Just the way he plays, how he protects the puck. Not just in Germany, I think worldwide he's one of the best players in this age. So I think there's more to come. We're very excited he's a German."
The reason the NHL came here is simple: more Sturms, more Draisaitls. Soccer is the No. 1 sport in this country, but hockey has a history here and received a boost when the German men won the silver medal at the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics. Germany's only other medals in hockey were bronze at the 1976 Innsbruck Olympics and the 1932 Lake Placid Olympics.

NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said he would expect the NHL to play a regular-season game in Germany in the near future. The NHL has played one before: The Buffalo Sabres defeated the Los Angeles Kings 4-2 before 14,200 at O2 World (now Mercedez-Benz Arena) in Berlin on Oct. 8, 2011.
"More and more players is better for hockey worldwide," Deputy Commissioner Daly said. "Anything we can do to support that we're committed to doing."
This event created a buzz. The local newspapers ran features on Draisaitl on Tuesday and Wednesday -- his background, his relationship with his father, the tour he gave his Oilers teammates of his hometown.
Fans formed a gauntlet from the front door of the hotel to the bus Wednesday, hoping to catch a glimpse of or an autograph from the players. Fans packed the NHL Global Fan Tour outside the arena, wearing all types of hockey jerseys -- lots from Cologne, lots from Edmonton, a sampling from other teams in Germany and the NHL.
The arena had that electric, energetic European atmosphere. Fans stood in each end zone, singing and chanting to the beat of a drum, throughout almost the entire game. One end would sing and finish with "Haie!" The other would respond in kind over and over again. In the third period, the entire lower bowl was on its feet and loud.
Draisaitl and center Connor McDavid stopped to sign autographs for kids in Oilers jerseys on the way off the ice.
"The fans were unbelievable," McDavid said. "It was a fun environment to play in."
Maybe another Draisaitl was inspired.
"He's a great kid," said Franz Reindl, president of the German Ice Hockey Federation. "He loves hockey and loves where he comes from. He loves to play here in Cologne and loves playing for the German national team.
"So we are really excited and thankful also that he's that kind of person you need for your program to show it's worth doing all the work and using all the time of your life maybe to reach this goal.
"So for us, he's a hero."