PHILADELPHIA -- Its far from a coincidence that the Edmonton Oilers went big with the third pick in the NHL draft. In taking German centre Leon Draisaitl, the Oilers added some much-needed size and depth at a position of great importance. "Its not a stretch to say were really happy and think that we filled a tremendous need for our hockey club and I think is going to have a real significant impact over time with our team," general manager Craig MacTavish said Friday night. "You combine him with our No. 1 pick last year (Darnell Nurse), and we start to see some size and quite a bit of character continue to come into our dressing room." Beyond 2011 No. 1 pick Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, the Oilers are thin at centre. And in Draisaitl, the highest-drafted German in NHL history, they get a six-foot-one, 208-pound player who has drawn comparisons to Anze Kopitar and Jaromir Jagr. Playing for the WHLs Prince Albert Raiders, Draisaitl had 38 goals and 67 assists in 64 games this past season as he developed his defensive game and faceoff prowess. Hes from Cologne but came to develop in the Canadian junior system and will remain in North America this summer to train. There are still things Draisaitl believes he needs to improve this off-season but the physically mature 18-year-old also thinks hell be ready to play in the NHL in 2014-15. MacTavish cant make such a guarantee. "Obviously we project the team to be much more productive and much deeper than we were this year, and thatll be a significant factor," he said. "We want to make sure that if we do put young kids into our lineup that they have a chance to have success, and thatll be a big factor along with how well he adapts to the NHL game at training camp." Just having a chance to earn a spot at training camp is a nice opportunity for Draisaitl, who understands he wont just be handed a job playing alongside Nugent-Hopkins, Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle. "Im going to have to do my job and earn my spot if I want to play in that league and on that team," Draisaitl said. "I think theyre moving forward for sure and they made some good trades, (David) Perron, and the guys are getting older and more mature. This is just awesome right now." Draisaitl was thrilled to put on the same orange and blue of Edmonton stars of the past, most of whom had their primes before he was born. "Theyve had so many great players on their team: Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, MacTavish -- all those guys are stars in the league, and wearing the same jersey as they do is unbelievable," he said. MacTavish joked that he owed Draisaitl $100 for dropping his name in that group. More importantly for the GMs current job, he hopes Draisaitl can develop into an important piece of this already young core. Draisaitl fills a specific role, too, as the Oilers seek a variety of talent at forward. "(He) protects the puck and is a real offensive-zone player," MacTavish said. "Weve got a lot of skill, but were in need of somebody down low thats capable of sustaining the play. We have David Perron that fits that bill and now Leon will be a guy that can really protect the puck." If Draisaitl develops as scouts expect, he would slot in as the Oilers No. 2 centre of the future. His size mixed with Halls speed could be a tantalizing combination. "Hes probably the fastest skater in the league and hes an exciting player to watch," Draisaitl said. "It might be a good fit, but you never know." MacTavish would love to spend Saturday adding more depth to the organization, but the Oilers dont have a second- or a third-round pick after trades for Perron and goaltender Ben Scrivens. And he doesnt expect to be able to get into the second. "Well be sitting on our hands, it looks like, through the second or third round," MacTavish said. "Hopefully the scouts can pull a few of those impact players out of the later picks." Nike Shoes China .Y. -- Dallas Stars coach Lindy Ruff had an opportunity to experience an entire range of emotions in his first trip back to Buffalo to face his former team. Nike Shoes From China Outlet .Hoffenheim forward Anthony Modeste opened the scoring on a counterattack in the 15th minute, shooting though Jaroslav Drobnys legs after Lewis Holtby lost the ball in midfield. https://www.nikeshoeschina.us/.com) - Bradley Beal deposited a season-high 33 points and John Wall posted another double-double as the Washington Wizards went on the road and beat the Houston Rockets, 104-103. Discount Nike Shoes From China ., climbed from seventh to fifth spot in womens competition Sunday at the ISU world junior figure skating championships. Cheap Nike Shoes From China . Chelsea ripped apart Hull inside 25 minutes at Stamford Bridge, with the early goals from Oscar and Frank Lampard securing a 2-0 victory. While Lampard had earlier missed a penalty, Roberto Soldado had no such trouble from the spot for Tottenham, scoring on his debut to clinch a 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace.The Chicago Blackhawks will try to sweep a two-game tour of Ontario when they visit the Toronto Maple Leafs in Saturdays battle at Air Canada Centre. The Blackhawks won for the second time in three games on Thursday, picking up a shootout victory over the Ottawa Senators to kick off a brief road trip. Patrick Sharp scored in the third round of the shootout to give Chicago the 5-4 victory in Canadas capital city. Sharp was the final skater of the shootout and he made it count as he faked to the forehand and roofed the puck over Craig Anderson for the win. Its always nice to get a win on the road in a tough place like this, said Sharp. Jonathan Toews scored twice while Kris Versteeg and Marian Hossa each posted a goal and an assist for the Blackhawks. Hossa recorded his 1,000th career point in the victory, becoming the 80th NHL player to reach the milestone. Scott Darling made 28 saves for the win in his third straight start, but with No. 1 netminder Corey Crawford due to return from an upper-body injury tonight, the rookie was reassigned to the clubs AHL affiliate in Rockford on Friday. Darling went 2-1-0 with a 1.98 goals against average during his first foray into the NHL, but, for now at least, it appears head coach Joel Quenneville is content to keep Antti Raanta in the clubs backup role. Crawford is expected to start tonight, while Raanta should get the call in Sundays home tilt versus Winnipeg. The Blackhawks, who are 2-2-0 on the road this season, have dominated Toronto in recent years although the Maple Leafs did post a 7-3 rout when the clubs last met on Dec. 14 of last season at ACC. Chicago had won the previouss eight encounters overall between the clubs and had claimed four straight in Toronto.dddddddddddd The Maple Leafs, however, enter Saturday having won two straight and three of their last four games. Toronto notched a 4-0 home victory against Buffalo on Tuesday and posted a 4-1 decision Friday evening in Columbus. Phil Kessel and Daniel Winnik both had a goal and two assists, leading the Maple Leafs to the easy win over the Blue Jackets. Kessel, who leads Toronto with 13 points, has recorded four goals and four assists over his last four games and he already has five multi-point games this season. David Clarkson and Nazem Kadri also scored, and Jonathan Bernier made 28 saves for the Maple Leafs. Were feeling good, but the season is full of peaks and valleys, said Winnik, who played in his 500th career game. The Maple Leafs announced before the game that forward Joffrey Lupul will be sidelined indefinitely with a broken bone in his right hand. The oft-injured Lupul has two goals and one assist in nine games this season. James Reimer is likely to start in net tonight for Toronto. His only career appearance against the Blackhawks was on March 5, 2011, when Reimer surrendered five goals in a 5-3 loss. The Maple Leafs recalled centre Sam Carrick from their AHL-affiliate Toronto Marlies on Saturday and the 22-year-old will play in his first NHL game this evening. Carrick was a fifth-round draft pick by the Leafs in 2010 out of the OHLs Brampton Battalion. In 62 games with the Marlies last season, the Markham, Ontario native had 14 goals and 21 assists. He has a lone assist through seven AHL games this season. ' ' '