Report: Draisaitl Is Interested In Playing For The Bruins

Could Edmonton Oilers superstar center Leon Draisaitl become the future No. 1 center for the Boston Bruins?

Speaking recently on BPM Sports, 91.9 FM in Montreal, former NHL enforcer Georges Laraque reported that Draisaitl is interested in playing for the Boston Bruins if he does not sign an extension with the Edmonton Oilers.

“Someone well placed within the Oilers organization said that if the Oilers don’t go deep in the playoffs, he doesn’t see Draisaitl re-signing at the end of his deal and that he’d prefer to be a first-line center in Boston,” the former Oilers enforcer said.

Editor’s note: This is from Georges Laraque clarifying what he said:

“Someone around the team told me that there’s a chance Leon doesn’t resign with the Oilers and the importance of this playoff run was huge for that regard then when we were talking about potential best fit I said Boston because they had no centers.”

Leon Draisaitl is about to enter the final season of an eight-year, $68 million ($8.5M AAV) contract. The 6-foot-2, 207-pound forward will be 30 years old if and when his contract expires after the 2024-25 season. Draisaital is coming off his third straight 100-point season in which he scored 41 goals and had 65 assists in 81 regular season games. He enters Game 5 of his team’s Western Conference quarterfinal series against the Los Angeles Kings with three goals and five assists in four games.

leon draisaitl makes it 6-1. pic.twitter.com/Jw5eWoogGR

— zach (@zjlaing) April 27, 2024

Acquiring a center of Draisaitl’s caliber via trade will surely drain an already depleted farm system and NHL Draft picks arsenal, as well as cost the Bruins a high-end roster player. Signing him would also likely break the bank in the 2025 unrestricted free-agent market. That being said, the Boston Bruins haven’t had a center with so much offensive power and play-making skill since Adam Oates. Oates was traded by the Bruins to the Washington Capitals during the 1996-97 season. He finished his career with 341 goals and 1079 assists.

Boston Bruins fans can only dream of pairing an Adam Oates-type player with superstar David Pastrnak. While the feeling here is that it’s unlikely that the Bruins could and/or would match the trade price or contract on the 2025 open market for Draisaitl, you never know.

Note: Thank you to Marco D’Amico of Montreal Hockey Now for the correct translation.