Oilers Coach and Superstar Leon Draisaitl Rave About Growing Fan Favourite For His Underrated Game

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Liam McCormick
November 24, 2024 (2:08 PM)

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Last night, Vasili Podkolzin was finally rewarded after a stretch of great play with his first goal as an Edmonton Oiler, and it drew some great praise from his coach and teammates.

Podkolzin began in the Oilers defensive zone, ran a give and go pass with Leon Draisaitl, and came streaking into the slot with speed for a one-timer shot he didn't miss. Podkolzin's celebration was just a display of pure relief.

Despite not scoring a goal in his first 21 games this season, Podkolzin has been elevated into the Oilers top six, and deserving of the ice time.

Leon Draisaitl raved about playing with Podkolzin this season, stressing that his game is entirely underrated by fans and the media, and he's become a perfect support player.

»He's a really, really good hockey player. He's really underrated. He does a lot of things that go unnoticed, that a lot of people that don't understand hockey, they don't pick up on it He's really smart and he passes the puck really well. He makes the right plays almost every single time.»
- Leon Draisaitl

Coach Knoblauch greatly praised Podkolzin's effort and level of play the last few weeks, and even revealed that his parents have been visiting to watch games the last few weeks.

Yesterday was Podkolzin's parents last day here. It's great that he got that moment before they left back to Russia.

»Time before practice, working hard in practice, spending more time after practice. He's been doing so many things right We've been using him on the penalty kill, moving him up the lineup to play with mostly Leon Finally. Finally one went in for him.»
- Coach Knoblauch

Everyone on the team was incredibly happy to see him finally be rewarded with a goal after working so hard to deserve it, and after he spent the last 42 games without one.

Podkolzin is becoming a favourite among the team and the fanbase, beginning with his legendary fight against Nashville Predators' forward Jeremy Lauzon and continuing with his great play.

Hopefully this opens the floodgates for Podkolzin to start producing some more offence with the Oilers this season. He is a great player, but hopefully he doesn't go another 42 games without a goal.