Oilers’ Connor McDavid’s ‘C’ fits to a ‘T’
EDMONTON, Alberta — He’s already a handful for NHL teams to stop. But the reality is Connor McDavid is going to make life difficult for the opposition on a grander scale for years to come.
The Edmonton Oilers’ captain is only 19 and has yet to play a full NHL season. But despite a recent slump that saw him go goal-less for 10 straight games, McDavid broke out with a hat trick Saturday, the first of his NHL career, as the Oilers stopped a five-game losing streak with a 5-2 win at Dallas. He is is tied for the league scoring lead with 22 points.
The 6-foot, 195-pound center is going to get bigger and stronger. He’s already among the fastest skaters in the league. And few, if any, can shift into high gear the way McDavid does once he has possession of the puck.
“I try to take advantage of my skills and keep working on my game,” McDavid said. “I still have a lot to learn.”
Even though he played only 45 games as a rookie last year after fracturing his clavicle in November against Philadelphia and missing two months, the Oilers decided to make him their captain. Usually, that goes to someone who has a few years’ experience.
McDavid, who was the captain of Team North America at the recent World Cup, has handled the role fine. He’s a lead-by-example guy and he’s got a lot of veterans around to lean upon for advice.
“The best thing about it is he doesn’t claim to or act as if he knows it all,” center Mark Letestu said.
New York Rangers coach Alain Vigneault said McDavid’s speed and ability to accelerate, even when the puck’s on his stick, makes him tough to defend.
“He’s probably the quickest player I’ve seen in a long time who can pick up speed when he has the puck,” Vigneault said. “He’s obviously a tough player to handle. You’re not going to completely shut him down. You just hope to limit his opportunities and do the best job you can. And from what I’ve seen, not many teams have been successful in doing that.”
McDavid, who had 16 goals and 32 assists after being drafted No. 1 overall in 2015, said the addition of Milan Lucic and others has made a difference. But the biggest change is in the team’s attitude.
“Just the belief we’re a better team,” McDavid said. “Obviously, we changed a lot of pieces and brought in a lot of new faces and that all helps. There’s a belief that we can come in and beat anyone on any given night and we expect to do that instead of hoping to.”
Oilers coach Todd McLellan said as McDavid matures physically, he’s really going to be dangerous.
“I think he has a DNA system within him that will allow him to continue to play with speed,” McLellan said. “What will happen when his body matures, it will allow him to barrel through on faceoffs and handle body contact. That happens with hard work and Mother Nature.
“You’ll look across the ice during warmups and you’ll see someone bigger than before and you say, ‘Holy Cow, how did that happen?’ I think that when Connor grows into his body, people around the league will be saying that.”
OLYMPIC DEBATE
The International Ice Hockey Federation claims it has the money to cover the costs of NHL players to participate in the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. But that may not be enough to convince the owners to shut down the league for two-plus weeks.
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said the $10 million to $20 million the IIHF will allocate, reportedly at the expense of helping the sport at the grassroots level, may not be enough. Bettman isn’t crazy about redirecting funds earmarked to grow the game and he’s not sure the infrastructure in Pyeongchang, i.e. luxury hotels, is sufficient to deal with the needs of NHL players and officials.
Most important, Bettman is not sure shutting down the sport to placate the International Olympic Committee, which gives nothing in return to the NHL, makes sense for the league.
“Ultimately it’s the owners’ decision,” Bettman said.
The players want to play in the Olympics and according to Players Association head Donald Fehr, the NHL is offering a three-year extension of the current collective bargaining agreement for the players going to participate in the Olympics.
Bettman told a Toronto radio station Wednesday that’s not necessarily the case, that the two sides have had discussions but nothing has been brought to the owners with regard to extending the CBA in exchange for allowing players to compete in the Olympics.
If the NHL ultimately does agree to participate, it means Las Vegas’ inaugural season will be on hiatus in February 2018. It’s not something owner Bill Foley or general manager George McPhee endorses.
“I’m not sure it makes sense to send our players halfway around the world in the middle of the season,” McPhee said last month at the team’s open house.
‘WORST’ PROMOTION
The Calgary Flames and Arizona Coyotes had been struggling. So when the two bottom-dwelling Western Conference teams met Wednesday at the Scotiabank Saddledome, a local radio station decided to have some fun with it.
Fans had an opportunity to win seats to the game courtesy of FM rock station Q-107. But instead of getting prime seats near the ice, the contest winner sat in the rafters in some of the worst seats in the building.
To win, you had to call in when the station played Beck’s “Loser.” And who said wacky radio promotions were dead?
Steve Carp’s weekly NHL notebook appears on Sunday. Contact him at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow @stevecarprj on Twitter.
