EDMONTON, AB – Edmonton Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl has been selected as one of the three finalists for the 2024-25 Hart Memorial Trophy, the NHL announced on Thursday.
Draisaitl joins Winnipeg's Connor Hellebuyck and Tampa Bay's Nikita Kucherov in the top three for the award given to the player determined to be the most valuable to his team, as selected in a poll of the Professional Hockey Writers Association.
Draisaitl secured his first-career Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy as the league's leading goal scorer, lighting the lamp 52 times in 71 games. Despite missing 11 games, he still finished seven goals ahead of the next highest scorer – Toronto's William Nylander – hitting the 50-goal mark for the fourth time in his career and finishing three goals short of matching his personal best of 55 from the 2021-22 campaign.
The 29-year-old from Cologne, Germany added 54 assists for 106 points, matching his total from last season. His +32 rating is the highest of his career, his six overtime goals led the NHL, and his 11 game-winning goals were tied with Winnipeg's Mark Scheifele for tops in the league.
Draisaitl will look to win his second Hart Memorial Trophy after taking the honour in 2020. His teammate, Oilers captain Connor McDavid, has won the award in 2017, 2021 and 2023.
Wayne Gretzky won the award a record nine times during his career, including eight in a row as a member of the Oilers from 1980 to 1987. His longtime Edmonton teammate Mark Messier is the only other player to win the Hart Trophy with more than one team.
