Month: September 2024

The Edmonton Oilers announced on Tuesday that all-star forward Leon Draisaitl has signed an eight-year, $112 million contract extension, making him the highest-paid player in the NHL. The new contract begins with the 2025-26 season and runs through 2033.

The Oilers posted on social media: “ LEON’S LOCKED IN The #Oilers have signed forward Leon Draisaitl to an eight-year contract extension beginning in 2025-26 with an average annual value of $14 million.”  The $14 million annual salary for Draisaitl is the highest in NHL history. The total value of $112 million is the second-richest in league history, trailing only Alex Ovechkin’s 13-year, $124 million deal that was signed in January 2008.

Oilers gneral manager Stan Bowman said in a press release: “This is an historic day for the Edmonton Oilers. Leon’s commitment to our team, our city and Oilers fans everywhere cannot be overstated. His desire to help bring a Stanley Cup title home to Edmonton is central to everything he does both on and off the ice.”

Draisaitl, 28, totaled 41 goals and 65 assists over 81 appearances last season for the Oilers; he also scored 10 goals and 21 assists in the playoffs, helping the Oilers reach the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2006.

Draisaitl – the 2019-20 winner of the Hart Memorial Trophy, Ted Lindsay Award and Art Ross Trophy — totaled 347 goals and 503 assists through his first 719 appearances for the Oilers. He ranks No. 5 in franchise history in career goals and assists.

The Oilers will host the Winnipeg Jets in a preseason game Sept. 22 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, and will host the Jets in their regular-season opener Oct. 9 at Rogers Place.

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The San Francisco 49ers have placed receiver Ricky Pearsall on the reserve/non-football injury list on Monday, two days after he suffered a gunshot wound to the chest during an attempted robbery at Union Square in San Francisco on Saturday. Pearsall was hospitalized before being released Sunday.

Pearsall, who was selected Pearsall with the No. 31 pick in April’s NFL draft, will now spend at least a month of his rookie season on the reserve/NFI list while recovering from the gunshot injury.

Per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport: ‘The #49ers placed WR Ricky Pearsall on the Reserve/Non-Football Injury List after he was shot in an attempted robbery over the weekend. He’ll miss the first four games as he recovers.’  San Francisco signed offensive tackle Brandon Parker to a one-year deal to fill the open spot on the 53-man roster.

According to the San Francisco Police Department, Pearsall was walking alone shortly after 3:30 p.m. local time Saturday when the suspect, a 17-year-old male from Tracy, California, attempted to rob him with a gun at the corner of Geary and Grant streets, resulting in a struggle between the two with both being shot. The San Francisco Fire Department said a 911 call came in at 3:38 p.m. PT with police and emergency personnel arriving soon after.

Pearsall was taken to San Francisco General Hospital, police announced that he was in “stable” condition. He was upgraded to “fair” condition on Sunday morning and released from the hospital less than 24 hours after the shooting. Pearsall’s mother posted on social media Sunday morning that her son had been shot in the chest with the bullet exiting out his back and missing vital organs. San Francisco Police Chief William Scott said the suspect was arrested right after the shooting Saturday and noted that the initial investigation indicated the suspect was acting alone, adding that there was “no indication” that the suspect had targeted Pearsall because he is a professional football player.

The 49ers open their season at home against the New York Jets on Sept. 9.

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Kansas City Chiefs running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire has been placed on the Reserve/Non-Football Illness list, and will miss at least four games to start the 2024 regular season (per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport). Edwards-Helaire missed several training camp practices and wasn’t on the practice field with the Chiefs on Sunday as they began preparations for Thursday night’s season opener against the Baltimore Ravens.

The veteran running back recently revealed his battles with PTSD, and did not detail the specific circumstances that led to his PTSD, but did say gun violence cost some of his friends their lives and that he dealt with a “self-defense situation” back in 2018 when he was in college at LSU.  He said: “Everybody goes through things .. Good, bad, just being able to cope with it, just being human. At 25 years old I’m just trying to live the rest of my life healthy.”   

Edwards-Helaire, a first-round pick in the 2020 NFL draft, rushed for over 800 yards as a rookie. He appeared in 15 games for the Chiefs last season, registering 223 rushing yards and a touchdown while adding 17 catches for 188 yards and a score.  The Chiefs have two running backs in addition to Pacheco on their active roster: veteran Samaje Perine, a recent addition after he was released by the Denver Bronco; and Carson Steele,  a rookie who made the team after a strong training camp and preseason.

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