US sports compact: Draisaitl scores and celebrates his eighth win in a row with the Oilers

National ice hockey player Leon Draisaitl and the Edmonton Oilers have their sights firmly set on the play-off places in the North American professional league NHL after their false start to the season. The Oilers won 2-1 at the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday evening (local time) and secured their eighth win in a row. Together with the Florida Panthers, this is currently the longest winning streak in the league.

Draisaitl scored the equalizer to make it 1-1; it was the 19th goal of the season for the Cologne player. His strike partner Connor McDavid scored the final score in the second quarter. For the Blackhawks, Lukas Reichel was relatively weak with two shots.

With 43 points, Edmonton is currently in fourth place in the Pacific Division and would currently reach the play-offs. In addition, the Oilers have played the fewest games compared to the competition in the Western Conference.

Meanwhile, there was nothing to gain for the other Germans who were in action on Monday. John-Jason Peterka and the Buffalo Sabers suffered a clear 2:5 home defeat against the Seattle Kraken, from whom Philipp Grubauer was still missing due to injury. With 38 points in the account, the play-off places are getting further and further out of reach for Buffalo. Peterka didn't contribute to the goal against Seattle.

The same applied to Tim Stützle, who suffered a clear 3:6 defeat at the Calgary Flames with the Ottawa Senators. The Canadian capital team remains at the bottom of the Eastern Conference with 28 points.

The worst team in the league is still the San Jose Sharks, who suffered a 7-1 defeat at the Toronto Maple Leafs without the injured Nico Sturm and suffered their twelfth defeat in a row.

Basketball world champion Dennis Schröder and the Toronto Raptors remain inconsistent in the NBA. At Schröder's former club Los Angeles Lakers around superstar LeBron James, the Canadians lost by a narrow margin of 131:132 on Wednesday night. Schröder scored ten points off the bench, while Lakers center Anthony David excelled with 41 points.

After four defeats and three wins from the last seven games, the Raptors remain stuck in the lower midfield of the Eastern Conference. With a total of 15 successes and 22 defeats, Toronto is within striking distance of the qualification places for the so-called play-in tournament, but the direct play-off places are already a long way away.

Despite a strong performance from Moritz Wagner, Orlando Magic suffered another defeat after two wins. The team from Florida lost 92:113 to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night. Wagner was his team's top scorer with 21 points and eight rebounds. Wagner's brother Franz is currently missing due to a sprained ankle.

Isaiah Hartenstein recorded his fifth success in a row with the New York Knicks. In the 112:84 win against the Portland Trail Blazers, the center, who was once again a starter, put up five points and 14 rebounds. In the absence of the injured regular player Mitchell Robinson, Hartenstein had already impressed recently. With the Knicks, who are still undefeated in the new year, the 25-year-old is currently in fourth place in the East.