Connor McDavid told the media after Thursday’s 9-4 win over the Seattle Kraken that he approached the game with a shooter’s mentality. “I thought I died a few the other day. You know, it ended up costing us a 1-0 game. Who knows if I’ll score on one of those, so I thought about shooting some more.”
I asked head coach Kris Knoblauch after the game how much it will change for the Oilers if McDavid’s gets a chip on his shoulder and commits to shooting more and putting the team on his back like he did Thursday night.
Knoblauch responded: “I think he was disappointed with your guys’ reporting on his offensive ability, or not shooting the puck. Maybe that sparked things.”
He joked that it might be a good idea for him to try that approach with some other players if they are going through dry spells. “I know that if I have a problem with other players, I will just discuss it with you…”
The media in attendance chuckled, but it does raise an interesting question… why is it necessary to be yelled at or questioned to push a player like McDavid to do what he is incredibly good at? The reality is that when McDavid chooses to shoot, he drastically changes the outlook on a game. The threat that he could score 50 or 60 changes the way opposing defenses have to play against him, changing the options available to McDavid and his teammates.
An example of this was his second goal off Joey Daccord, where the netminder literally stood still. Daccord had no idea McDavid would shoot in that position. Waiting for a pass, it never came, and McDavid simply slid it under the netminder in a goal that looked ridiculous. McDavid has that ability: making goaltenders look foolish.
“He’s one of the best in the league for a reason. When he says he’s going to shoot the puck… You have to play it differently. But if you play it too differently, he’s going to pass it off, so it’s kind of hard to defend,” Evan Bouchard said.
In September, McDavid told reporters: “I want to prove that scoring 50 or 60 isn’t a one-off. I’ve scored 50 goals and had 100 assists, and I like the goals a little bit more.”
You have to wonder if his three-goal performance on Thursday lights a fire under him to keep doing what he did against Seattle. He’s feeling better about his game, the Oilers are looking more like the Oilers and his teammates are starting to emulate his approach even if they can’t physically do what McDavid can do on the ice.
Next: McDavid ‘upbeat’, changed mentality leads to huge hat-trick
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