After sending former starter Jack Campbell to the AHL and firing head coach Jay Woodcroft 13 games into the season, just about everybody knows how badly the Edmonton Oilers stink right now.
And with a record of 3-9-1 to start the year, the Oilers have struggled on all fronts. While goaltending and defence have been abysmal, even their offensive firepower, expected to be one of the strongest in the league, has been misfiring as of late.
Among those not producing as expected is none other than captain and Hart Trophy winner Connor McDavid.
With two goals and 10 points over 11 games so far this season, McDavid is still churning it out at a point-per-game pace, which is something most NHLers would be more than happy with. But by his standards, something is not right.
In fact, after failing to get on the board during Saturday’s game against the Seattle Kraken, the 26-year-old tied the longest pointless streak of his career at a whopping three games.
The last time McDavid went that long without hearing his name announced after the red light went off was back in March of 2021 during the adapted COVID-19 season. With Edmonton in the North Division at the time, McDavid netted zero points throughout a three-game series against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
He made up for lost time, though, snapping the streak with a three-point night in a 3-2 Edmonton win over the Calgary Flames.
Although history tells us that he’s due to pop off, another factor could work in favour of getting McDavid going again.
Edmonton’s new head coach Kris Knoblauch has a long history with McDavid. He coached the Oilers captain in the OHL with the Eerie Otters for three seasons from 2012/13 to 2014/15. Since this will be his first gig as an NHL head coach, his former star player may want to help him look good.
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