After that initial meeting in Erie, McDavid could tell how special Schaefer was.
“First off, he’s a great kid,” McDavid said. “He’s got a great personality. He brings a lot of energy. And as a player, it seems like he’s off to a great start himself, which is good to see. So, yeah, great player and a good kid. I haven’t seen too, too much of his games this season, just the highlights, but you are obviously paying attention to how he’s doing.”
Through his first three NHL games, Schaefer has three points (one goal, two assists) and leads the Islanders in ice time per game (23:18).
McDavid, 28, had some advice for the recently turned 18-year-old Schaefer when it comes to dealing with the attention that comes with being a talented prospect turned face of a franchise.
“There’s always another guy coming up, another guy that’s going first overall, another highly touted player, and everybody handles it differently,” McDavid said after practice Wednesday. “He’s got a good head on his shoulders. He’s got a great personality. I think he’s going to do just fine. My only advice would be just to enjoy it, because it goes really, really fast. It really, really does.”
Stopping McDavid is nearly an impossible task. So how does Schaefer plan on doing that?
“You can’t get caught puck-watching,” Schaefer said. “Obviously, he’s a fast guy, so you have to have a good gap. You just got to give him nothing. You got to play hard every time you are out there with him.”