A mainstay on the Oilers 2024 Stanley Cup Final team, Leon Draisaitl isn't leaving Edmonton any time soon.
After a decade in the league, all of which has been spent so far with the Oilers, the star center inked a blockbuster extension on Tuesday. Last season, Draisaitl played in 81 games for Edmonton, scoring 41 goals and notching 65 assists in the team's runner-up campaign.
The move is the first on general manager Stan Bowman's long list of offseason responsibilities that includes contract decisions for defenseman Evan Bouchard and center Connor McDavid.
Here's everything to know about Draisaitl's contract details, including how the Oilers made the star center one of the highest-paid players in the NHL with the new deal.
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Leon Draisaitl contract details
The longtime Oiler signed a whopping eight-year extension with Edmonton, giving him the highest annual contract value in the NHL's salary cap era. The deal, beginning with the 2025-26 season, is worth $14 million annually for a total of $112 million.
Currently, Draisaitl is entering the final season of another eight-year contract he signed in 2017 with the Oilers that carries a $8.5 million cap hit. Before his extension was announced, the highest NFL cap hit belonged to Toronto's Auston Matthews at $13.25 million from a deal signed in August 2023.
"This is a historic day for the Edmonton Oilers," Bowman said. "Leon's commitment to our team, our city, and Oilers fans everywhere cannot be overstated. His desire to help bring a Stanley Cup title home to Edmonton is central to everything he does both on and off the ice."
How old is Leon Draisaitl?
Drafted third in the 2014 NHL Draft, Draisaitl is now 28. The German left-hander enters his 11th season in the league this October.
So far, he has 850 points on 347 goals and 503 assists through 719 regular-season games, and, in 74 playoff appearances, he has 108 points on 41 goals and 67 assists. Draisaitl's best season came in 2019-20 when he notched an NHL-best 110 points and won both the Art Ross Trophy and Ted Lindsay Awards.
Since the Oilers 2018-19 campaign, the center has ranked second in the league in points, only behind McDavid, and second in goals behind Matthews. In his 10 years on the ice, Draisaitl has helped Edmonton qualify for the playoffs six times — five of which came in the past five years.
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Highest-paid NHL players
Draisaitl won't join the league's list of highest-paid players until the 2025-26 season, but when he does, he'll become the second Oiler in the top five, joining McDavid. Toronto is the only other team with two players in the top 10, paying both Matthews and William Nylander handsomely for the foreseeable future.
Here's a list of the highest-paid NHL players for the 2025-26 season when Draisaitl's extension hits.
| Rank | Player | Team | Cap hit |
| 1 | Leon Draisaitl | Edmonton Oilers | $14 million |
| 2 | Auston Matthews | Toronto Maple Leafs | $13.25 million |
| 3 | Nathan MacKinnon | Colorado Avalanche | $12.6 million |
| 4 | Connor McDavid | Edmonton Oilers | $12.5 million |
| 5 | Artemi Panarin | New York Rangers | $11.64 million |
| 6 | Elias Pettersson | Vancouver Canucks | $11.5 million |
| T-7 | William Nylander | Toronto Maple Leafs | $11.5 million |
| Erik Karlsson | Pittsburgh Penguins | $11.5 million | |
| 9 | David Pastrnak | Boston Bruins | $11.25 million |
| T10 | Rasmus Dahlin | Buffalo Sabres | $11 million |
| Drew Doughty | Los Angeles Kings | $11 million |
