Leon Draisaitl is headed back to the place that shaped him.
The NHL announced Thursday morning that the Edmonton Oilers will play two regular-season games in Cologne, Germany, giving Draisaitl a chance to take the ice in his hometown in games that count in the standings. The matchup and dates still haven’t been revealed, but the trip is part of the league’s Global Series.
It’s the second time the Oilers have played in Germany during Draisaitl’s career, though this one carries far more weight. Back in 2018, Edmonton faced the Cologne Sharks in an exhibition game. This time, the results will matter in the standings.
The Oilers won’t be the only team making a German stop. The Boston Bruins are also scheduled to host two regular-season games in Munich, the hometown of J.J.
Peterka. Their opponent has not been announced either.
Germany has rarely seen NHL regular-season action. In fact, there has been just one such game in league history there: the Buffalo Sabres against the Los Angeles Kings on Oct. 8, 2011, at the O2 World Arena in Berlin. Buffalo’s roster that night included German players Jochen Hecht and Christian Ehrhoff, along with Austrian Thomas Vanek.
Draisaitl’s connection to Germany has only grown stronger since that 2018 visit. In Edmonton’s 4-3 win over Kolner Haie, a team coached by his father, Peter, the Oilers star skated alongside fellow German Tobias Reider. Edmonton then continued on to face the New Jersey Devils in the season opener in Gothenburg, Sweden.
The Oilers also have another German player in the system now, with Josh Samanski, who is originally from Erding, on the rise.
Germany will get another taste of the NHL in 2026, when Düsseldorf hosts the NHL Global Series Germany at PSD Bank Dome on December 18 and 20. That event will feature two regular-season games between the Ottawa Senators and Chicago Blackhawks.
This isn’t the first time Edmonton has been part of a German hockey showcase, either. From Sept. 6-8 in 1990, the Oilers and St. Louis Blues took part in the Epson Cup tournament against Düsseldorfer EG.
St. Louis beat Edmonton 10-1 in the final, and the Oilers later traveled to EC Graz and EC Hedos Munich in West Germany and Austria for exhibition games just a couple months after winning their fifth Stanley Cup.
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