Connor McDavid celebrates a goal during Oilers’s 7-3 win over Canucks (Credit: IMAGN)
Connor McDavid discussed his approach to reaching 1,000 career NHL points on Saturday. After a three-point performance in the Edmonton Oilers’s 7-3 win over the Vancouver Canucks, McDavid now has 995 points, putting him close to the milestone.
When Sportsnet’s Scott Oake asked if he thinks about reaching 1,000 points, Connor McDavid said he hasn’t focused on it. He explained that his main focus was getting healthy after a recent ankle injury.
“No, I haven’t to be honest.” McDavid said, “It’s been a tough start, you know, for myself, personally as well, with dealing with the injury and stuff like that, it’s never fun. So that’s been the focus, and just trying to get back healthy and playing and happy to be back out there and contribute to a big win tonight.”
"If you want to look at the positive, it's better than last year's start."
Connor McDavid speaks with @ScottOake after a three-point night in an Oiler win on the road. pic.twitter.com/1eQD0IcS6c
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) November 10, 2024
Connor McDavid scored a power-play goal in the game and assisted on another goal, showing he’s back to contributing. This was his first three-point game of the season, bringing his total to four goals and nine assists in 12 games. Although he had a slower start, McDavid is now playing at a point-per-game pace, making his 1,000-point milestone likely to happen soon.
Connor McDavid’s positive insights on Leon Draisaitl’s goal and the Oilers’ win
The Edmonton Oilers (7-7-1) secured a 7-3 Vancouver Canucks (7-3-3) win on Saturday at Rogers Arena. The Oilers played strong offense, pulling away with four goals in the third period.
Leon Draisaitl started the scoring early. Just after an Oilers power play ended, he collected a loose puck and scored. Connor McDavid called it, per NHL.com,
“It’s pretty much a power-play goal. Another one in the third to kind of seal it. That’s what we want to do. We want to contribute to games, contribute to wins. We’ve done that for years and years and I would expect that it’ll get going.”
In the second period, Corey Perry made it 2-0 by finishing a cross-ice pass from Derek Ryan. Soon after, Viktor Arvidsson added to the lead, scoring to make it 3-0. Vancouver replied with two quick goals from Elias Pettersson and Filip Hronek, bringing the score to 3-2.
The Oilers dominated the third period. Connor Brown would score to make it 4-2 after a scramble in front of the net. Later, McDavid scored on a power-play rebound, extending the lead to 5-2.
However, less than a minute later, Connor McDavid assisted Brett Kulak’s goal and the score was 6-2. Brown scored his second goal shortly after, ending Lankinen’s night. Pius Suter scored a late power-play goal for Vancouver, making the final score 7-3.