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The begin of the NHL season is nearly a month away. Players are heading again to their house rinks in preparation for coaching camp, and at this time limit, it’s the calm earlier than the common season storm. Over at the NHL Network, they mentioned a enjoyable offseason subject as they questioned whether or not it was too early to think about Edmonton Oilers ahead Connor McDavid for the Hockey Hall of Fame (HHOF) at this stage of his profession.
Former NHL participant and present hockey analyst Mike Johnson mentioned, “Connor McDavid, at this point, is a Hockey Hall of Famer. At 500 games. Absolutely. If he never played another game, he goes in the Hall of Fame. That’s how good he is.”
It’s a disputable take. Has he performed sufficient video games to be included in such a prestigious group of hockey gamers? One of the sport’s most electrifying gamers, Pavel Bure, performed solely 702 NHL video games and previous to his induction, there was a disagreement about whether or not he performed sufficient NHL video games. In the top, the 18-member choice committee on the time determined that his 702 NHL video games, a Calder Trophy, and two Rocket Richard Trophies had been sufficient to be inducted into the HHOF.
McDavid has performed even fewer video games than Bure however has completed way more. With every thing he’s achieved in his seven seasons within the NHL, I’d should agree with Johnson that regardless that he’s performed lower than 600 video games, if he determined to hold up his skates proper now, he’d be a surefire Hall of Famer.
McDavid Has Already Become One of the All-Time Greats
To be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, the choice committee analyzes the following attributes of a participant: taking part in means, sportsmanship, character, and contributions to his or her workforce or groups and to the sport of hockey basically. That mentioned, it’s vital to do not forget that they take a look at a participant’s contribution to hockey as a complete, and never simply gamers that performed within the NHL.
If McDavid hung up the skates, he can be famend primarily for his success within the NHL. In 569 NHL video games, he’s amassed 303 targets and 547 assists. Yet, listed here are some spectacular details. He reached the 400-assist mark in 426 video games and in doing so, was the fourth quickest in NHL historical past to attain the feat. Also, he was the sixth-fastest player in NHL historical past to hit the 600-point mark when he did it in 421 video games.
The Oilers’ captain has additionally received some critical {hardware}. In comparability to Bure and his Calder Trophy and two Rocket Richard Trophy wins, McDavid has received 5 Art Ross Trophies, two Hart Memorial Trophies, three Ted Lindsay Awards, and recorded 5 100-point seasons by the age of 25. In the method, he joins solely Wayne Gretzky as the only other player in NHL historical past to perform these feats at such a younger age.
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Ready for some extra enjoyable details? When he received the Hart Trophy within the shortened 2020-21 season, he grew to become simply the second unanimous Hart Trophy winner in NHL historical past (you guessed it, Gretzky was the opposite one) as he obtained 100 out of 100 first-place votes from the Professional Writer’s Hockey Association (PHWA). That season, he recorded 105 factors in 53 video games. The final participant to tally near that was Mario Lemieux with 99 points in 53 games in 1996. Only Gretzky, Lemieux, Jari Kurri, Jaromir Jagr, Marcel Dionne, and Steve Yzerman, completed that feat earlier than the present Oilers’ captain.
McDavid Ranks Top 5 in Points-Per-Game within the Playoffs
Out of all of the gamers drafted between 2008 and 2021, solely two gamers have extra factors than McDavid. Steven Stamkos, drafted in 2008 has 1,056 factors, and John Tavares drafted in 2009 has 975 factors, compared to McDavid’s 850, who was drafted in 2015. In lower than 600 regular-season NHL video games performed, he’s already established one of essentially the most spectacular résumés in hockey historical past.
At this level, I do know what you’re pondering. His common season statistics are nice, however he’s by no means received a Stanley Cup. That’s true, however he nonetheless has a lengthy profession forward of him and it’s vital to do not forget that it even took the good Detroit Red Wings legend, Yzerman, 14 years earlier than he captured his first championship. Additionally, within the unlucky occasion for Oilers followers that he by no means wins a Cup, there have been many nice gamers earlier than him, like — Dionne, Dale Hawerchuk, and Jarome Iginla to call a few — that had been inducted into the HHOF with out a Stanley Cup win.
Nevertheless, let’s discuss his playoff performances. There have been gamers up to now that excel within the common season, however disappear when it issues most within the playoffs, however not McDavid. In the 49 playoff video games he’s performed in, he’s tallied 75 factors.
According to Quant Hockey, McDavid is presently fourth all-time in points-per-game (P/G) within the playoffs with 1.53 P/G. On that notice, the record of gamers which are ranked straight beneath him can also be spectacular, because it goes Barry Pederson, Nathan MacKinnon, Mark Messier, and Bobby Orr, in that precise order.
McDavid Reached a New Level in Last Season’s Playoffs
Entering the 2023-24 season, the Oilers may lastly be in a position to win it all. One purpose to imagine that’s as a result of the hockey world bought to see McDavid ascend to a new stage final playoffs. He grew to become the primary participant in NHL historical past to start a postseason with 9 multi-point video games within the opening 10 video games, and he completed first place in scoring within the postseason with 33 factors in 16 video games, regardless of not taking part in the ultimate spherical.
The Athletic’s Dom Luszczyszyn spoke about McDavid’s efficiency final spring and mentioned the Oilers’ captain was taking part in in “God Mode”. In the 2022 Playoffs, his 2.06 factors per recreation was the best of any participant to play over 10 video games – in over 30 years. The final individual to common over two factors per recreation was Lemieux in 1991-92 when he registered 2.21 P/G (from Connor McDavid Is Putting on One of the Most Dominant Playoff Performances We’ve Ever Seen,” The Athletic, 5/26/22). It’s a scary thought, but it surely appears McDavid is perhaps getting even higher as he ages.
Related: Top 10 Candidates for the New Oilers Hall of Fame
The youngest captain in NHL historical past has completed a lot in 487 video games and it’s really spectacular once you examine his awards and statistics with different all-time greats. He’s a lock for the HHOF for every thing he’s achieved on a private stage. That mentioned, the 2023-24 Oilers workforce that normal supervisor Ken Holland has assembled would be the finest probability that McDavid has had in his profession so as to add a Stanley Cup to his résumé.
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