WALKING THE WALK
McDavid leads by example: Jones
You’d figure Connor McDavid would be exhausted. Beat. Bushed. Dog-tired. Out of gas.
I mean, the way McDavid has had to flap his wings, carrying 23 hockey players on his back for 17,579 air kilometres over the last two weeks — 20,029 by the time the Edmonton Oilers return from Winnipeg for their home opener Thursday — you’d expect the captain to be pooped.
But there he was, on the ice at practice Monday, with a smile on his face and all sorts of jump as the team returned to the ice at Rogers Place after taking a detour from their world tour to sleep in their own beds in Edmonton for two nights.
Early in this season the perception around the NHL, and yes, even here at home, is that McDavid essentially is flying solo and if he doesn’t get it done, it’s not going to get done.
“That’s not my perception at all,” said the back-to-back Art Ross Trophy winner who is out of the gate with five points in three games, the exact same number the entire hockey club has produced in their stops in Sweden, Boston and New York.
“I think we’re a good team up and down the lineup. That’s all I’ll say about that.”
There’s an enormous debate going on around this team that died down during a prolific pre-season, but has managed to return with only McDavid driving the offence to start the season. But the captain, it would seem, figures the best way for the debate to die down again is to walk the walk instead of talking the talk.
Asked to take the temperature of his team as the Oilers made the highly unusual pit stop between road games, McDavid said it’s pretty positive, actually.
“I really don’t know how to say it. I think everyone is feeling pretty good, looking forward to getting back here and playing some home games.”
Coach Todd McLellan, obviously, is making a close study of the mental condition of his troops as they go through this torture test.
“I don’t sense that there’s a big drag on spirits of this group. We’re catching guys doing things right and we’re catching guys doing things wrong and trying to work with them. The spirit in practice was pretty good and the energy level was up.
“It’s been a different two weeks. It was nice to come home, I can tell you that. It was a smart thing on our behalf to come home and regroup. We haven’t skated in our building since we played Calgary here in a pre-season game over two weeks ago.”
McDavid, the head coach said, has been a study every air mile of the way.
“He’s done a tremendous job. First of all, I think, leadership comes through actions. He’s played good games. He’s been good on both sides of the puck. He’s trying to be responsible all over the rink and a good example for himself and his teammates.
“The secondary stuff is keeping teammates up and prepared and ready and he’s been a good soldier as far as that goes. He’s done a good job of being a liaison between the coaching staff and the team and that’s not an easy thing to do when you have three new coaches. I’ve tried to back off a bit to give him some time with the new coaches so they can create relationships and that’s gone smooth,” he said of the dynamics involving Glen Gulutzan, Trent Yawney and Manny Vivieros.
“Connor definitely delivered during the two weeks we were over in Europe.”
McDavid’s perspective during the pit stop here was that things are good regardless of what the prepared-to-panic levels may be with the public.
“We were happy to get a win in New York. We couldn’t come away with that empty-handed,” he said of the trip that not only featured eight time zones but different games times at every stop.
“It would be nice to get the second on the road in Winnipeg,” he said of the final stop on this trip.
There is a significant difference if the team gets back here Thursday to begin a homestand against Boston, Nashville, Pittsburgh and Washington — the NHL equivalent of Murderers’ Row — at 2-2 instead of 1-3.
“It’s going to be a good gauge for our team, a good tester. These teams were right there at the end last year and expect to be there again this year.”
We’ll see what happens Tuesday in Winnipeg but you should know McDavid had six points after four games in his 100-point Hart Trophy winning season of 2016-17 and five points after his first four in his 108-point season last year. So that will be interesting.
But on the whole, as Captain McDavid headed for the plane and wheels up to Winnipeg, this is not the team some may perceive it to be right now.
I think we’re a good team up and down the lineup. That’s all I’ll say about that.” CONNOR MCDAVID