McDavid looking forward after Oilers' run to Stanley Cup final

Edmonton Oilers forward Connor McDavid (97) breaks down ice during practice before taking on the Florida Panthers the next night in Game 7 of the NHL Stanley Cup finals in Sunrise, Fla., on Sunday, June 23, 2024. (Nathan Denette / The Canadian Press)

LAS VEGAS, Nev. — Connor McDavid attacked the off-season from a different angle.

The Edmonton Oilers superstar captain hopes it will help his team secure one more victory next June.

After the club fell to the Florida Panthers in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final, McDavid knew there wouldn't be much time to make physical gains over the summer.

And with a stuttering opening act in 2023-24 still fresh, that was perfectly fine.

Known for an intense work ethic and gruelling training sessions, the 27-year-old eased off the gas ever so slightly this time around with an eye towards being in a better position for October's puck drop.

"It was solely just going off of the start of last year," McDavid said Wednesday at the NHL/NHLPA player media tour at a luxury hotel on Sin City's famous strip. "I was as skinny as I'd ever been, I was worrying about all these different numbers in the gym and it didn't translate to the ice — it didn't translate at all."

The three-time Hart Trophy winner as league MVP didn't feel right at camp last September and then got hurt early in the schedule.

"My approach this year is to make sure I'm rested, first and foremost," McDavid said. "Rest was an important issue and making sure that my body is moving well. Compared to last year at this time, I feel a lot better. That's all I was looking for."

The five-time scoring champion still registered 132 points before putting up 42 more in the playoffs — only Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux have had more in a single spring run — to become just the second skater in NHL history on a Cup-losing team to win the Conn Smythe as post-season MVP.

A hectic July and August that included his marriage to fiancee Lauren Kyle meant McDavid didn't have as much time as other players to reflect and dissect what had just transpired in the searing Florida heat.

The disappointment, however, no doubt will linger.

Former Oilers general manager Ken Holland, whose contract wasn't renewed, addressed the team in the wake of the loss. He shared that the Detroit Red Wings' defeat to Sidney Crosby's Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 7 of the 2009 final haunts him to this day.

"That's coming from a guy who's won Cups before," McDavid said. "I'm not sure it's something that you ever get over ... time kind of just moves on."

The Oilers' headline-grabbing summer saw the addition of forwards Viktor Arvidsson and Jeff Skinner in free agency, and the loss of defenceman Philip Broberg and winger Dylan Holloway to the St. Louis Blues via offer sheets, before centre Leon Draisaitl signed an eight-year, US$112-million contract extension last week.

McDavid, who agreed to an eight-year, $100-million deal in the summer of 2017, will be eligible to do the same next July.

"A lot of things go into deciding where you're gonna play and how long you're gonna play there for," he said. "Leon signing his big deal, knowing that he'll be there, certainly would go into that decision, amongst many other things. I'm gonna do what's best for my family, right? I'm gonna do what's best for my chance to win.

"And win many times over again."

Leaving room

Draisaitl's contract carries a salary cap hit of $14 million per season starting in 2025-26, but there's no doubt the big German left money on the table to ensure the organization has the resources — re-upping McDavid is, of course, at the top of the to-do list — to reach hockey's ultimate prize.

"I don't think I necessarily pushed my contract all the way to the limit," Draisaitl said. "But I am very happy."

He added conversations about how all the pieces potentially fit are part of any negotiation.

"But at the end of the day, (McDavid's) going to do what's best for him," Draisaitl said. "I did what I thought was best for me."

Awkward moment

McDavid, Draisaitl and Oilers teammate Zach Hyman were sitting down for lunch alongside St. Louis forward Robert Thomas following an August workout when the Blues announced Broberg and Holloway — at the time, key pieces of Edmonton's future — signed the offer sheets.

The Oilers had seven days to match the deals, but chose to let the pair walk and instead received draft-picks compensation.

"It was pretty funny," Thomas said earlier this week at the player media tour. "They weren't too happy."

Edmonton's stars politely pushed back on that version of events.

"I saw Robbie's comments, I thought they were pretty funny," McDavid said with a wry smile. "I think it was more just surprised."

Added Draisaitl: "Connor and I weren't sitting there pouting like little babies."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.