Connor McDavid speaks to the media after losing to the Florida Panthers in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup final in Edmonton on June 19. With the ultimate goal of a Stanley Cup within reach, McDavid is in no hurry to abandon the core of his Oilers teammates.JASON FRANSON/The Canadian Press
One day after shocking the hockey world with his social-media post announcing his two-year, US$25-million extension with the Edmonton Oilers, Connor McDavid was back at work on Tuesday, putting the finishing touches on team preparations before Wednesday’s season opener against the Calgary Flames.
Staying true to one of his explanations of getting the deal done before the season starts to avoid distractions, the Oilers captain eschewed the idea of a formal news conference, instead meeting the assembled press in a state of mid-undress following practice.
Predictably, the questions about the length of the contract, the size of the annual cap hit – US$4.5-million lower than Minnesota’s Kirill Kaprizov’s NHL-record deal signed last week – came in thick and fast.
But McDavid calmly fielded every inquiry with careful consideration, even making light of the seismic impact of his decision with some well-timed humour.
“I guess it’s a unique situation,” he told reporters. “We weren’t going to sign a long-term deal. So two years at that number makes a lot of sense, gives us a chance … to extend our window here in Edmonton.
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“[My dog] Lenny’s not going to go hungry with that money. So we’ll be fine. So it’s about winning, and that’s always what I’ve preached. So I think this deal gives both sides what they’re looking for.”
Given how close the Oilers have come to hoisting their first Stanley Cup in over three decades – falling to the Florida Panthers in each of the past two finals – McDavid knows his ultimate goal is within reach, and is in no hurry to abandon the core of teammates that helped him get there.
However, he is also equally aware that key cogs such as Zach Hyman, Darnell Nurse, Mattias Ekholm and Brett Kulak are already in their 30s, with Leon Draisaitl, Andrew Mangiapane and Jake Walman – who also signed an extension with the Oilers this week – set to reach that age bracket this coming season.
With regards to the length of contract, McDavid said that “everything was on the table” as he considered his options over the summer. As it is, he is set to reach unrestricted free agency in the summer of 2028, giving him three more runs at the Stanley Cup with the Oilers, assuming nothing happens between now and then.
McDavid’s extension gives the Oilers room to spend money and allows him to continue to work with the core of the team that has fallen short in the past two Stanley Cup finals to the Florida Panthers.JASON FRANSON/The Canadian Press
“It gives the core guys that have been here a really long time, and guys in this room that have come here to be a part of something special, gives us a chance to play that out, and that’s important to me obviously,” he said.
“There’s no secret that with a team that pushes for it every year, like we have for the last number of years, four or five years, we’ve given up first-round picks and prospects and all that stuff that [means there’s] not a ton of young guys.”
The short-term extension also lights a fire under general manager Stan Bowman and president Jeff Jackson to ensure that McDavid has the tools to win at least one Cup in the next three seasons. The captain accepted that reality, although he added that putting the organization’s feet to the flames wasn’t necessarily his goal.
“I think everyone understands the situation this room and this organization is in,” he said. “We want to win … If it lends urgency, that’s a good byproduct, I guess.”
As a veteran NHL executive – he won three Stanley Cups as GM of the Chicago Blackhawks – Bowman understands the magnitude of the task, although he feels it hasn’t changed all that much just because of McDavid’s new deal.
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“It’s not like we’re planning out five years from now to be a team that might be able to win the Cup,” he said in a news conference Monday. “Our focus last year was to win, our focus this year is to win.”
Even getting back to the final will be anything but a formality though. The West is arguably the stronger of the two conferences, with contenders such as the Vegas Golden Knights, Dallas Stars, Winnipeg Jets and Colorado Avalanche all looking to knock Edmonton off its perch.
But McDavid taking one of the biggest hometown discounts in NHL history gives the Oilers something of an edge going forward, according to head coach Kris Knoblauch. The salary cap for the coming season is US$95.5-million, and is projected to rise to at least US$104-million in 2026-27, before spiking again to US$113.5-million the season after that.
“Every time a team gets good, all the players, their contracts inflate, and it makes it more difficult to keep that good team together. Now, a couple things are happening is one, the salary cap’s going up, and you don’t have Connor McDavid’s contract inflating like it probably would.
“So it gives the team a little more flexibility on keeping players that would otherwise have to leave, and it also allows the team to make some adjustments and bringing in players that maybe make our team strong.”
While the organization was undoubtedly overjoyed by McDavid’s extension, the gesture went a long way with his teammates, too. Draisaitl, who will remain the highest-paid Oiler with an annual average salary of US$14-million for the next eight years, knows that with McDavid in the fold, the team has a good chance to get over the hump.
“Realistically, you only need one year,” he said. “If you play it well, you’re giving yourself a chance. So obviously, we got three years to do what we’re chasing and to get to the ultimate goal.”