After having left all his strength, all his passion and all his energy, Connor McDavid was still tormented by emotions when meeting the journalists to review the Edmonton Oilers results.
McDavid and his teammates came close to achieving one of the unique feats of arms in NHL history by coming back after losing the first three games to the Florida Panthers. This historic comeback makes the pain even more intense for the Oilers who ultimately came so close to the ultimate goal.
“It’s going to take time to get over it, but at the end of the day, you’re going to have to get over it at some point, and we’re going to move on and get ready for another big season and get ready to do it all again , and that’s all we can do,” McDavid said during the Oilers review.
Winner of the Conn Smythe Trophy in a losing cause – his first since 2003 – McDavid dominated the playoffs with 42 points in 25 games. The captain’s exploits will be remembered by fans in Edmonton and around the NHL, but for McDavid, the disappointment is too recent to fully appreciate the magnitude of his accomplishments.
“Will there ever be a time to look back? Yes. There were a lot of happy moments throughout these playoffs, that’s for sure, a lot of great moments that I’ll remember for the rest of my life. »
The Oilers should get more opportunities to shine in the playoffs over the next few seasons, but McDavid remains aware of the work and repetition required to simply have the chance to get back into such a position.
“I think the hardest part is being patient along the way. You can only play one match at a time and only one day passes at a time. You can’t ride the wave of ups and downs, because there are a lot of ups and downs throughout a playoff journey. I think our group learned a lot from this year. »
The future and success of the Oilers will be greatly influenced by the decisions made by the organization and its other star, Leon Draisaitl, who will see his contract expire at the end of the next season.
Sparing comments about his contractual situation, the German instead took the time to remember the great successes of the last campaign.
“Of course it was a special journey, I think any time you can have pretty much the whole country behind you it’s special. It’s obviously a lot of fun to be a part of these games, and the stakes are never higher than what we were playing for. It’s disappointing. It’s frustrating. … But I’m very proud of what we experienced this year,” Draisaitl said.
