EDMONTON, Alberta — Connor McDavid thought the Stanley Cup Final would be more magical.
“You spend your life working to get to a position like this. You get here and you expect to have that magical feeling, but to be honest, everything has been pretty normal,” he said Thursday before Game 6.
McDavid’s playoff performance has been anything but normal, even by the standards of the three-time NHL MVP. Through Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final, McDavid has:
• Set a record for most assists in a single NHL postseason (34).
• Recorded the fourth-highest postseason point total (42) of any player in NHL history, and is five points behind Wayne Gretzky’s all-time record.
• Become the first player in NHL history to record consecutive four-point games in the Stanley Cup Final (Games 4 and 5).
• Scored 11 points in the final, two shy of Gretzky’s record of 13 points in 1988.
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And that’s just a small sample of his statistical achievements.
McDavid has brought the Edmonton Oilers back from the brink as they attempt to become the second team in NHL history after the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs to win the Stanley Cup after starting a series down 3-0.
Coach Kris Knoblauch said it’s McDavid’s dominance that helped give his team the confidence to come back against the Florida Panthers.
“Sometimes you’re in the locker room and you look at your leaders and you’re not sure if they’re ready to play. They’re nervous or struggling, and that creates a lot of doubt on your team,” he said. “But when you watch Connor McDavid put up back-to-back four-point games, that gives your team a lot of confidence. Your best players do that. When they’re ready to play, you’re like, ‘everybody’. Okay, we’re going to be fine.’ “I just give confidence to the entire locker room.”
Goalie Stuart Skinner said self-confidence extends beyond the ice.
“He has a lot of confidence in us. For me personally, he gives me a lot of confidence, whether I let in 5 (goals) or get a shutout, he’s always in my corner. He always has my back and tells me that. He believes in me. “Skinner said before smiling. “Plus, he always lets me win on the plane when we play.”
McDavid is now the favorite to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP, although his team is not the favorite to win the Stanley Cup Final. But for the Oilers captain, the mission isn’t about breaking records or creating iconic moments.
“I don’t think you’re thinking about that,” he said. “Those things just happen. They’re a byproduct of being prepared, of all the work we’ve done throughout the regular season, of all the work we’ve done during this stretch. Those moments are a product of guys being ready. the big moment. There is no group that is more prepared for the moment than this one.
Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final will be played Friday night in Edmonton.
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