Draisaitl bitterly disappointed: “We are left empty-handed”

After another bitter disappointment, Leon Draisaitl must continue to wait for the fulfillment of his greatest sporting dream: Like last year, the Edmonton Oilers failed in the NHL finals against the Florida Panthers.

June 18, 2025

From: dpa

"I am disappointed. The lesson is that we did not win. Nobody cares. We set out to win, lost again and are left empty-handed. The goal must be to come back," said Draisaitl after the 1:5 defeat in the sixth game and added: "We scored too few goals and conceded too many, making too many mistakes."

Draisaitl scored 22 goals and provided 11 assists in 22 playoff games this season – but in Sunrise, just outside of Miami, he didn't manage a single shot on goal on Tuesday evening (local time). His teammate Connor McDavid wasn't the star player this time either, but Sam Reinhart scored four goals for the Panthers.

McDavid pays tribute to Panthers

"It's not easy to come back. You know how hard it is. Sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn't. But now we're here and we've accomplished this task," Reinhart said.

The match winner: Sam Reinhart © APA / CHRISTIAN PETERSEN

"We lost to a really good team," McDavid said. "Nobody gave up, nobody threw in the towel, but they're just a damn good team. They defended the Stanley Cup for a reason."

Keywords hockey NHL Edmonton Oilers Leon draisaitl Florida Panthers