NHL Update: Team Germany opts for Leon Draisaitl to be the flag bearer for the Winter Olympic Games

The Edmonton Oilers center Leon Draisaitl has been selected as the flag bearer for the Winter Olympic Games, which is scheduled to start on February 6, 2026. He will be one of Germany’s flagbearers for the Milan Cortina opening ceremony in a sign of recognition for one of the NHL’s biggest stars as the league returns to the Winter Olympics.

With Draisaitl’s main residence in Cologne, Germany, and a secondary one in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, Draisaitl has an eight-year contract worth $112 million with the Oilers, making him one of the highest-paid players in the league with a yearly salary of around $14 million.

According to TSN, when Draisaitl was shortlisted for the vote, the German Olympic committee said its criteria for a flagbearer included a history of sporting success and being a popular role model for fairness in sports. It is to be noted that Leon Draisaitl has 27 goals and 51 assists in 54 games for the Oilers this season.

Oilers’ Leon Draisaitl selected as Team Germany’s flag bearer for the upcoming Olympic Games

It is indeed a great achievement for the Edmonton Oilers and their center Leon Draisaitl, as the player has been selected as Team Germany’s flag bearer for the upcoming Winter Olympic Games, that is scheduled to be held in Milan Cortina, Italy.

The selection is a matter of pride and honor for the first-time Olympian Draisaitl. As per reports, he will also be joined by the ski jumper Katharina Schmid, who will carry the German flag in Friday’s ceremony after they won both an internal poll of German athletes and a public vote. Reports suggest that more than 135,000 people took part, the German Olympic Committee said on Wednesday.



Announcing the same on Twitter/X, “The Edmonton Oilers congratulated the player for the feat and wrote, “Congrats to Leon, who was selected as Germany's flag bearer for the #MilanoCortina2026 opening ceremony! #LetsGoOilers”

Meanwhile, Draisaitl’s opponents in the vote for male flagbearer were Tobias Wendl, who has won six career Olympic gold medals in luge since 2014, winning every Olympic event he’s entered, and Nordic combined skier Johannes Rydzek, who’s heading into his fifth Olympics and won two gold medals in 2018.

The Olympic men's hockey tournament will begin on Feb. 11, and Germany's first game comes against Denmark on February 12, 2026. The Edmonton Oilers will wrap up their pre-Olympic schedule on Wednesday against the Calgary Flames.


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