Each week, we check in with our readers on social media and e-mail to see what’s on top of their mind, explore the hot topics of conversation and answer hard-hitting questions about the Edmonton Oilers. Here are some of the chief topics from the past week:

1. Why isn’t Connor McDavid putting pucks in the net like usual?

This one is a bit perplexing. It’s not like he hasn’t been taking his shots. In fact, he leads the team in that department with 45 across the first 15 games.

They’re just not going in for him at his regular rate this season.

Oh, sure. There was that one game where he scored two goals, but one was into an empty net. And before that, it took seven games before he scored his first goal. If he hadn’t just scored his last time out against the Dallas Stars, he would have been averaging one goal every five games.

His latest goal Tuesday brought him up to one in every four games (.267), which is still good. But not quite Connor McDavid good. On his career, he averages slightly better than a goal every two games (.502). And that’s just numerically illustrious in today’s NHL.

He’s ranked top five among active players behind: Auston Matthews (.636), Alex Ovechkin (.598), David Pastrnak (.517) and teammate Leon Draisaitl (.507).

So, what is going on? And more importantly, how do you fix it? Because it’s not like you can tell the greatest player in the world he should be scoring more.

Situationally, have there been instances this season where he should have shot the puck? Yes, but no more than a handful, at best.

This one has been a bit of a headscratcher at this point, and it’s gotten better this week, suggesting the law of averages will eventually work itself out.

2. How do you like the ‘elephant in the room’ now?

This one comes straight from one C. McDavid, who watched Evan Bouchard get hauled in front of the media and harassed with questions after directly being involved in three goals-against in a 4-3 overtime loss to the New York Rangers.

Two turnovers off his stick, and a blown coverage in the extra session was reason enough for Bouchard to stand up and face the music.

And in his very next outing, Bouchard, as only he does, bags the overtime tally in a 3-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks, prompting the following from his captain:

“It’s the most ‘Bouch’ thing ever to stand in there like he does,” McDavid told reporters. “You guys can say what you want about him, we love him in there and we know his best is among the very, very, very best.”

Only he’s not. Not all the time, anyway. But he sure has the ability to be.

In fact, it could be argued the only consistent part of Bouchard’s game is how extreme he plays. Extremely good one night, extremely poor the next. Every time he touches the puck, everyone in Rogers Place cringes knowing there’s a darn good chance it could end up in one net or the other.

The question they have to ask themselves is, does the good outweigh the bad? And it’s pretty obvious what his teammates think.

But that didn’t stop him from going right back to playing the role of spectator at the most inopportune of times in a 3-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues on Monday.

3. How big a deal is McDavid reaching 1,100 NHL points?

Staying on the subject of McDavid, he just reached and surpassed the 1,100-point plateau with two assists against St. Louis.

Sure, the moment was mired by a loss to the lowly Blues, who came into the game sitting dead last and on a seven-game losing skid (0-5-2). They managed to beat an Oilers squad that had just dusted off a Utah Mammoth squad that was sitting on top of the standings and on a seven-win run, but that’s the topic for another conversation.

Right now, McDavid should be shown his due. In a start that’s been far from perfect, he just keeps putting up points, leading the team with 21 through the first 15 games.

If feels like not so long ago he was celebrating his 1,000th career point, becoming the fourth fastest ever to do so, in his 659th game (which also happened to be as many assists as he earned in that span).

Fast-forward 67 games and he’s put up another 100 points (1.49 points per game). That’s right up there with the 1.52 points-per-game pace he’s been on over his career, and ranks him in the same fourth place all-time in fastest to 1,100 points.

The thing is, McDavid doesn’t have the advantage of playing in what’s become so affectionately referred to as the Brown Pad Era, unlike Wayne Gretzky (464 games), Mario Lemieux (550 games) and Mike Bossy (725 games). Goalies actually leave their feet to make saves now.

But there’s no denying it’s Mount Rushmore-like company to be in.

E-mail: gmoddejonge@postmedia.com

On Twitter: @GerryModdejonge

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