'We'd love to turn this around for the city': Draisaitl hopes to end Oilers' slump against Flames
Leon Draisaitl knows the Edmonton Oilers could be playing a lot better.
He knows there are no excuses about the 6-0 loss to the Florida Panthers on Thursday, a third-period collapse he deemed "unacceptable."
Last time Draisaitl talked with the media earlier this week, a reporter called him "pissy" for being short with him.
However on Saturday, hours before the season's second Battle of Alberta, the German star was more enthusiastic in his answers and hopeful the team would turn it around.
"It's us in the room that have to stick together and that have to get the job done. We're sticking together no matter what. It's been like that all year, it's going to continue to be like that," Draisaitl said.
"We would love to turn this around for the city as well. I know how much the Oilers mean to the fans and to the city."
At the start of December, the Oilers had the best record in the NHL with 16 wins out of 21 games.
Since then, Edmonton has the worst record in the league, with only two mid-December wins in their last 15 contests.
The Oilers now sit seventh in the Pacific Division and six points back of the final playoff spot.
Edmonton has had success against the Calgary Flames in recent seasons and won the Battle of Alberta 5-2 on Oct. 16.
"Hopefully tonight is the night stuff goes in our direction," Draisaitl said.
"We're obviously looking to get out of this slump…tonight would be a great time to start that."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
"It's a bit of a complicated pattern; we've got a lot going on," said Jennifer Smith of the Meteorological Service of Canada in an interview with CTVNews.ca on Wednesday. "[As is] typical with weather, all of these things are related."
Boeing's financial woes continue, while families of crash victims urge U.S. to prosecute the company
Boeing said Wednesday that it lost US$355 million on falling revenue in the first quarter, another sign of the crisis gripping the aircraft manufacturer as it faces increasing scrutiny over the safety of its planes and accusations of shoddy work from a growing number of whistleblowers.
Police tangle with students in Texas and California as wave of campus protest against Gaza war grows
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.