{"id":487600,"date":"2026-02-20T12:14:28","date_gmt":"2026-02-20T12:14:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/487600\/"},"modified":"2026-02-20T12:14:28","modified_gmt":"2026-02-20T12:14:28","slug":"edmonton-oilers-keeping-a-close-eye-on-connor-mcdavid-at-the-olympics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/487600\/","title":{"rendered":"Edmonton Oilers keeping a close eye on Connor McDavid at the Olympics"},"content":{"rendered":"

Connor McDavid<\/a> isn\u2019t just representing\u00a0 his country for the first time on the Olympic stage.<\/p>\n

He is also representing the Edmonton Oilers<\/a>.<\/p>\n

And what we\u2019re seeing from the superstar at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Games is eerily representative of his NHL club, where all the focus is on offence.<\/p>\n

Not that it\u2019s McDavid\u2019s fault, of course. All he\u2019s done since arriving in Italy for his first taste of Olympic hockey is set a record of nine assists and 11 points through his first four games.<\/p>\n

All gas, no break. Out-offensing any mistakes made.<\/p>\n

Sound familiar? It sure does to Oilers fans.<\/p>\n

Not that they\u2019re letting that dark cloud hanging over Rogers Place rain on Team Canada\u2019s Olympic parade ahead Friday\u2019s semi-final showdown against Finland. They are happy to see McDavid wear the red and white Maple Leaf as a superhero cape. As are his Oilers teammates back home.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we\u2019ve seen it all tournament, his excitement and his passion, he has a way to elevate his game in every moment and make the most of it and enjoy it,\u201d said Oilers defenceman Darnell Nurse, who was also watching his cousin, Sarah, play for gold Thursday with Team Canada\u2019s women. \u201cIt\u2019ll be fun to watch. It\u2019ll be fun to see him go out there and do his thing. I think he\u2019s just being himself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even if the look on McDavid\u2019s face doesn\u2019t exactly scream \u2018fun\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure he\u2019s having fun on the inside,\u201d Nurse said. \u201cI don\u2019t think you commit yourself that much to something you don\u2019t love.\u201d<\/p>\n

The semi-final represents the biggest international game McDavid has played since scoring the overtime winner for Team Canada in last-year\u2019s final of the Four Nation\u2019s Face-Off against the United States, while one more win would have him competing for Olympic gold.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think with his preparation, he puts a lot of pressure and focus on him playing at his best,\u201d said Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch. \u201cI believe that\u2019s for anything; regular season, exhibition, he always wants to do his best.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a very serious person and he just wants to perform at his best. The higher the stakes of the game, there\u2019s more preparation, there\u2019s more focus.\u201d<\/p>\n

But whereas McDavid is the clear leader in the Oilers dressing room, in Milan he is sharing space with the rest of the best this country has to offer.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow he is in the (Canadian) dressing room? I don\u2019t know the dynamics there, who is talking, who keeps it loose and that\u2019s stuff,\u201d Knoblauch said. \u201cI just see with Connor, he\u2019s a very serious guys and he just puts a lot of pressure on himself and this is something that he\u2019s been waiting to do for a long time, play in the Olympics.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd he doesn\u2019t want it just to be an experience, he wants it to be a positive experience and part of it is winning goal and playing well.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Knoblauch, these Olympics have offered him a chance to watch someone else walk a mile in his shoes.<\/p>\n

As Oilers head coaches even before him have discovered, there is a draw to play McDavid alongside the team\u2019s next-best scorer in Leon Draisaitl \u2014 who suited up for Team Germany \u2014 whenever the going gets tough and they need points on the board.<\/p>\n

And you can add Team Canada head coach Jon Cooper to the list of believers in that strategy, as it didn\u2019t take him long to put McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon and Macklin Celebrini together on the same line at the Olympics.<\/p>\n

The trio are the highest-scoring Canadians in the NHL so far this season, sitting first-, second- and fourth-overall in the points race coming into the Olympic break.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s hard not to, he\u2019s game-breaking,\u201d Knoblauch said of his captain. \u201cHe can make something out of when there\u2019s nothing there. He makes a play whether he\u2019s scoring the goal or he\u2019s creating that offence.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s the best in the NHL and when you have that ability to put him over the boards, it\u2019s pretty hard to keep him on the bench and go with somebody else because he\u2019s so dynamic.\u201d<\/p>\n

Either way, it\u2019s been must-see TV for his Oilers teammates back home.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously, playing with some of the guys you watch a little more closely. It\u2019s been very fun to watch, it\u2019s been entertaining and I think it\u2019s great to see the NHL players over there again,\u201d said Oilers goaltender Tristan Jarry, who is making the most of not having to come up against McDavid as practice resumed for the rest of the Oilers this week.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s a special player. I don\u2019t think you could say anything else, other than that.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s one of a kind and the things he\u2019s doing there, it\u2019s special.\u201d<\/p>\n

E-mail: gmoddejonge@postmedia.com<\/a><\/p>\n

On X: @StarkRavinMod<\/a><\/p>\n

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