It’s not as if there wasn’t enough riding on the upcoming season for the Edmonton Oilers. After making two trips to the Stanley Cup Final, and losing both, and the considering the age of the roster, it could feel as if this is nearing the end of a cycle. Add to that the weight of falling at the last hurdle two consecutive seasons, and failing to take that last step this season wherever they may fall short, and it will feel as if the world is collapsing around them. The fear of ending up with nothing for this era will become very real.
And now everyone is auditioning for Connor McDavid.
With McDavid seemingly willing, and desiring, to carry the question of whether he’ll re-sign in Edmonton, suddenly every aspect of the organization is on notice. They’re all wondering if they have to live up to the standard that McDavid will require to stick around. And if they’re not, then either McDavid will leave and the entire scope of the Edmonton Oilers will look vastly different. Or they will wonder if McDavid is the one behind their future trade, contract negotiation, or release.
The Oilers have started the past two seasons very slowly. They went 5-5-1 last October. In October of ’23, they went 2-5-1. Last year, they could shrug it off, knowing they had overcome the previous October to race through the Western Conference when it mattered.
But what happens this time, should the Oilers treat October once again as a stretch routine? Is there still a swagger and confidence to them knowing what they’ve already done? Or is everyone on eggshells, wondering if this particular losing streak or dip in play is what makes up McDavid’s mind?
How it will play in the dressing room is another question. Wingers may wonder if a 10-game scoreless streak is being side-eyed by McDavid and either proof of what the team as a whole can’t accomplish or the ammo for that player to be moved along to get in someone that McDavid approves of. Everything will have that tinge to it, that added sharpness. It’s bad enough to go five games without a goal for a top six winger. It’ll be extra drudgery now.
That applies to coach Kris Knoblauch and GM Stan Bowman, too. What buttons do they feel they need to push to not only do their jobs of winning as many games as the Oilers can, but also to keep McDavid sated? In his presentations and talks with McDavid, Bowman surely would have to lay out how he intends to keep the team in contention going forward. Names would have had to be said, trades outlined, signings they’ll attempt. Which means McDavid is in the dressing room knowing something most if not all of his teammates don’t.
That’s probably not all that abnormal for a long-serving captain like McDavid is, nor for a team’s leading player that is on the verge of a long extension. Free agents probably get a similar pitch from suitors once they get on the open market.
There was already a desperation to this Oilers season, after being so close twice in a row and now having to try and get back there with all that mileage on the odometer but none of the reward that lightens the burden. Now they’re going to add a season-long audition for the entire pivot point of the team to it. Probably won’t make for the most comfortable of atmospheres.
What Will It Be Like For The Edmonton Oilers To Audition For Connor McDavid?