Leon Draisaitl was named captain of Team Germany for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 on Monday.
Draisaitl, an alternate captain for the Edmonton Oilers, is the highest-scoring Germany-born player in NHL history, with 1,036 points (428 goals, 608 assists) in 845 games. The 30-year-old forward ranks fifth in the League this season with 80 points (29 goals, 51 assists) in 55 games. Draisaitl has 141 points (52 goals, 89 assists) in 96 Stanley Cup Playoff games and has helped the Oilers reach the Cup Final each of the past two seasons.
In 2019-20, he had 110 points (43 goals, 67 assists) in 71 games and won the Art Ross Trophy as the NHL’s scoring leader, the Hart Trophy as most valuable player and the Ted Lindsay Award as most outstanding player, as voted by players.
Moritz Seider and Tim Stutzle were named alternate captains for Germany.
Seider, a defenseman, has 38 points (seven goals, 31 assists) in 58 games for the Detroit Red Wings. The 24-year-old won the Calder Trophy, awarded to the NHL’s top rookie, in 2021-22. The No. 6 pick by Detroit at the 2019 NHL Draft, he was Germany captain at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship.
Stutzle, a forward, entered the Olympic break leading the Ottawa Senators with 61 points (28 goals, 33 assists) in 57 games. The 24-year-old was captain for Germany at the 2021 World Juniors, when he was named the tournament’s best forward with 10 points (five goals, five assists). Stutzle was the No. 3 pick by Ottawa at the 2020 NHL Draft.
Germany, which is in Group C, plays its first game of the tournament against Team Denmark on Thursday (3 p.m. ET; Peacock, CBC Gem, TSN).