"A good reminder": McDavid staying positive after Oilers see streak ended
Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid isn’t going to wallow after he saw his team’s 16-game winning streak come to an end in Vegas on Tuesday night.
The team played one of their tightest-checking 60 minutes of the season, but couldn’t quite solve Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Adin Hill, who turned away 30 of the 31 shots he faced en route to a 3-1 victory over the Oilers.
The loss meant that Edmonton would fall short of tying the 1992-93 Pittsburgh Penguins for the longest winning streak in NHL history. The Oilers will have to settle for 16, which is tied with the 2016-17 Columbus Blue Jackets.
It was a loss that is sure to sting a bit more, as it came against one of their most bitter rivals and stymied a chance at some form of revenge after Vegas eliminated Edmonton in last year’s playoffs.
However, for McDavid, this loss served as an important reminder of what it takes to win in the NHL.
“It’s been a while since [we’ve lost],” McDavid told reporters after the game. “[You] forget sometimes how bad you hate losing, it’s a good reminder.”
"I liked a lot of parts of our game."
Connor McDavid on tonight’s tight match in Vegas. @Enterprise | #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/EzL9N6a1Jn
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) February 7, 2024
McDavid did his part, scoring the game’s opening goal on a rare shorthanded 2-on-0 alongside Leon Draisaitl. In the final 40 minutes, the Oilers outshot the Golden Knights by a 23-13 margin. The difference was a Vegas goal by Chandler Stephenson in the early goings of the third period.
“I liked a lot of things about our game,” said Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch after the game. “It’s probably one of our better games that we’ve played in the last probably two or three weeks.
“Overall, I thought the effort was good and we just couldn’t capitalize on our chances.”
"Overall I thought the effort was good & we just couldn’t capitalize on our chances."
Coach Knoblauch shares post-game comments.@Enterprise | #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/hhBguZtLxV
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) February 7, 2024
Edmonton will see their record drop to 29-16-1 on the season and remain at 59 points in the standings. As it stands, the team is now seven points back of the Golden Knights for second in the Pacific Division, but they do have five games in hand on Vegas.
The LA Kings are three points back of the Oilers and the Nashville Predators, who occupy the final Western Conference wildcard spot are five points back of Edmonton.
Oilers defenceman Darnell Nurse says the team isn’t satisfied with where they are in the standings.
“There is a lot of hockey to be played here,” Nurse told reporters. “We’re back in the hunt, we’re not content by any means… we worked hard to get ourselves into this position.”
"We’re back in the hunt, but we’re not content by any means."
Darnell Nurse provides comments after tonight’s loss to the Golden Knights. @Enterprise | #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/XPk17Tfcx4
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) February 7, 2024
McDavid and the rest of the Oilers will look to gather their 30th win of the season on Friday night as they kick off a California road trip against the Anaheim Ducks.
Follow Channels and Categories