Connor McDavid could not have been much better last season – heck, his campaign with the woeful Edmonton Oilers inspired a massive debate about Hart Trophy voting – but obviously the young captain is not happy with the result.
So No. 97 has spent his summer trying to get better in all areas, working with Joe Quinn’s PEP program and seeing what the next generation is up to – namely, top 2019 draft prospect Jack Hughes, who skated with McDavid in Toronto.
“I haven’t seen too many of his games, but he was lights-out in practice,” McDavid said. “He’s an amazing talent. He’s got so much skill, he’s fast and his hands are great.”
Technically, McDavid shouldn’t want Hughes on his team, because that would mean the Oilers would have missed the playoffs again. After putting a major scare in the West back in the 2017 post-season, Edmonton fell back to Earth last year, with numerous key members (goalie Cam Talbot, defenseman Oscar Klefbom, just to name two) tripping in 2018. The Oilers won just three of their first 10 games and what was supposed to be a potential Stanley Cup contender was the furthest thing from intimidating.
Though McDavid led the league in scoring with 108 points, earning himself the Art Ross Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award (most outstanding as chosen by the players) in the process, he considers failure a group activity.
“Everyone has to be better,” he said. “We have to hold each other accountable. Everyone has to be…almost sick of losing. Kinda like after my first year; you could feel a shift in mentality and culture. That same type of thing needs to happen.”
The opportunity is there – the West and specifically the Pacific Division looks pretty wide-open in 2018-19 – but it will still be a challenge. Edmonton didn’t make any significant changes in the off-season, so it’s the same lineup that flopped last year. Outside of McDavid and maybe a handful of others, speed was a big problem and there’s no indication the pace of the NHL is going to slow down anytime soon. Perhaps KHL star Mikko Koskinen can take some pressure off Talbot in net, but that’s a big ‘if.’
Most likely, it’s going to be up to McDavid and Leon Draisaitl to create enough offense and hold on to the puck long enough to get wins. McDavid’s 108 points last year were a career high, but no one would be surprised if he eclipsed that this season. The combination of speed and skill is just so potent, but watching McDavid play cross-ice 3-on-3 at PEP got me thinking: As McDavid put moves on top of moves on top of moves en route to the net, I wondered: can you ‘plan’ unpredictability as an offensive player? I posed the question to McDavid and his response was pretty illuminating.
“It’s more hockey IQ, being able to think the game on your toes,” he said. “The game is fast now and that’s what makes the elite players elite. Everyone can skate, everyone can handle the puck, everyone can shoot. The difference is thinking.”
McDavid told me that he didn’t watch much of the playoffs this season. Part of the reason was that he was overseas, playing for Canada at the World Championship (where the national team lost to the Americans in the bronze medal game). But no doubt as a competitor it’s tough for McDavid to see others going for the chalice he wants to raise about his head some day soon.
With his skills, smarts and determination, it’s hard to see McDavid being denied that glory at some point in his career.
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