Oilers’ High-Star will be NHL’s highest-paid player in history when 8-year, $112M US extension kicks in

New contract begins with the 2025-26 season and runs through 2033

The Edmonton Oilers announced on Tuesday that they have signed star center Leon Draisaitl to an eight-year contract extension worth $ 112 million US.

With an average annual value of $14millionUS,thisdealisthehighestinNHLhistory,surpassingthepreviousrecordheldbyTorontoMapleLeafscaptainAustonMatthews,whosecontractaverages$ 13.25 million US annually.

Last season, Draisaitl played 81 games, netting 41 goals and 65 assists for a total of 106 points. He also contributed 10 goals and 21 assists in 25 playoff games, helping lead Edmonton to its first Stanley Cup final appearance since 2006.

Draisaitl was scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent next summer.

“This is a landmark day for the Edmonton Oilers,” said Oilers general manager Stan Bowman in a statement.

“Leon’s dedication to our team, the city, and Oilers fans everywhere is invaluable. His commitment to bringing a Stanley Cup title back to Edmonton is at the heart of everything he does, both on and off the ice.”

In August 2017, Draisaitl signed a contract extension for eight years at $68millionUS,whichhadanaverageannualcaphitof$ 8.5 million US. This deal quickly became one of the best bargains in the NHL and will end after the 2024-25 season.

Now 28 years old, he has tallied 347 goals and 503 assists for 850 points in 719 regular-season games since being selected third overall in the 2014 NHL Draft.

During the 2019-20 season, Draisaitl led the league in scoring with 110 points (43 goals, 67 assists) in 71 games before the COVID-19 pandemic halted the season.

As a result, he won the Art Ross Trophy and later earned the Hart Trophy as NHL MVP and the Ted Lindsay Award, given to the outstanding player as voted by NHLPA members.

Having played for the Prince Albert Raiders in the WHL during his junior career, Draisaitl has achieved six 100-point seasons, along with an 84-point performance in the shortened 2020-21 NHL season.

In the 2022-23 season, he recorded a career-high 128 points, while his teammate Connor McDavid led the league with 153 points, having achieved a personal best of 55 goals the previous season when Auston Matthews from the Toronto Maple Leafs finished first with 60.

The Oilers struggled to find the right combination around Draisaitl and McDavid until they finally found success by reaching the 2022 Western Conference final, where they lost to the Colorado Avalanche, who went on to win the Stanley Cup.

The following spring, Edmonton was eliminated in the second round by the Vegas Golden Knights, another team poised to claim the championship. This year, they lost in the final to the Florida Panthers after defeating the Los Angeles Kings, Vancouver Canucks, and Dallas Stars.

McDavid’s current contract, with a salary cap hit of $ 12.5 million, extends through the 2025-26 season.