Leon Draisaitl

Leon Tim Draisaitl (German: [ˈleːɔn ˈdʁaɪ̯ˌzaɪ̯tl̩] (listen); born 27 October 1995) is a German professional ice hockey centre and alternate captain for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Draisaitl grew up playing hockey in Germany until he was selected second overall in the 2012 CHL Import Draft by the Prince Albert Raiders. After two seasons with the Raiders, he was drafted third overall by the Edmonton Oilers in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft. In 2020, Draisaitl became the first German player to win the Art Ross Trophy as the leading point scorer in the NHL, the Hart Memorial Trophy as regular season MVP, and the Ted Lindsay Award for most outstanding player. Draisaitl is the son of former German national team player Peter Draisaitl, who represented West Germany and Germany in 146 games, including at World Championships, the World Cup and at the 1988, 1992 and 1998 Nagano Olympic Winter Games. Draisaitl was born on 27 October 1995 in Cologne, Germany, to Peter and Sandra Draisaitl. When he was a child, Draisaitl's father played ice hockey for the Kölner Haie of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga and appeared in three Winter Olympics with the German national team. Draisaitl played a number of sports as a child, including soccer, but he was most interested in ice hockey. As an adolescent, Draisaitl played with the Kölner Haie under-16 team and the Adler Mannheim under-18 team while skating on the side with the Ravensburg Towerstars, a team his father coached. During the 2011–12 German Development League (Deutsche Nachwuchsliga) season, Draisaitl recorded 21 goals and 56 points in 35 games for Jungadler Mannheim and was named the league's Player of the Year.