NHL stars excited and wary about Connor McDavid
WASHINGTON — Edmonton Oilers general manager Peter Chiarelli pulled up stats on his computer to see what recent No. 1 draft picks did in their rookie seasons. Nathan MacKinnon had 63 points two years ago, John Tavares had 54 in 2009-10.
Oilers forward Connor McDavid goes into his rookie year with the highest expectations of anyone since Sidney Crosby 10 years ago. Crosby blew up for 102 points, and didn’t even win the Calder Trophy because Alex Ovechkin had 106.
No one expects McDavid to be a 100-point player as an 18-year-old, but several top picks have high expectations for the phenom who has drawn comparisons to Crosby and even Wayne Gretzky.
“I haven’t seen a kid with that much talent, I think, ever,” 2008 top pick Steven Stamkos said. “Dynamic is, I guess, the word of the day when it comes to watching him skate out there and handle the puck and just handle himself off the ice. I think it’s going to be a pretty smooth transition for him.”
McDavid is coming off a season in which he averaged 2.55 points a game with the Ontario Hockey League’s Erie Otters. To put that into perspective, Crosby averaged 2.7 a game in his final season with Rimouski Oceanic in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.
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