One quarter of the way through the season, Connor McDavid has registered a point in every game.
McDavid puts his 21-game point streak on the line Sunday when the Edmonton Oilers visit the Philadelphia Flyers.
Edmonton, as a team, comes into Philadelphia with an impressive streak of its own. The Oilers (15-3-3) have won four straight games and secured at least a point in 18 of their first 21 contests. The primary reason, of course, is McDavid, who most recently notched an assist in Saturday’s 1-0 triumph over the Toronto Maple Leafs.
McDavid has 11 goals and 39 assists, making him one of five players in NHL history to open a season with 50 points in 21 games or fewer. Hall of Famers Wayne Gretzky (three times), Mario Lemieux (three), Bernie Nicholls (one) and Mike Bossy (one) are the others.
“I’ve seen it for so long and he always finds another level to get to,” teammate Ryan Nugent-Hopkins said. “It’s like the older he gets, the more he figures out the game a little bit. It’s hard to wrap your mind around, but he is driving it for us every night. It’s his work on and off the ice that comes first and the points follow that.”
Devon Levi made 19 saves for his first NHL shutout, helping Edmonton improve to 10-2-2 in its last 14 games.
“It feels good, super special,” Levi said. “Since I was a kid, I was thinking about getting a shutout in the NHL, so I’m just soaking it in. The guys played unbelievable tonight. … That’s just like a textbook win right there.”
Defenseman Evan Bouchard scored the lone goal for the Oilers. Leon Draisaitl assisted on the tally, extending his point streak to eight games.
Those two also connected on the game-winning goal in Wednesday’s 3-2 win against Philadelphia. In that one, Draisaitl found Bouchard for the overtime goal against Dan Vladar, who is expected to start in Sunday’s contest.
Joseph Woll got the nod for the Flyers on Saturday, finishing with 28 saves in a 4-3 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets. Philadelphia trailed 2-0 before rallying for the win behind two goals from Denver Barkey, including the decisive tally with 8:06 remaining.
“We were a little tired tonight — a little sluggish,” Flyers coach Rick Tocchet said. “And we grinded it. … Those are the type of games you have to win. I give the guys a lot of credit.”
Philadelphia finished its five-game road trip with a 2-1-2 record – a step in the right direction for one of the NHL’s most disappointing teams.
“Some nights it’s going to be tougher than others, but as long as we find some more consistency in our game, I think we’ll be alright,” captain Sean Couturier said. “Obviously, there’s some downs at times. It depends how you weather it. I thought we did a good job tonight.”
In addition to the first career multi-goal effort by Barkey, the Flyers also benefited from a goal from another 21-year-old in Matvei Michkov. The Russian winger leads the team with 11 goals — more than twice as many as Trevor Zegras, who ranks second on the squad.
“We’re a young team,” Tocchet said. “I’m impressed how these young guys are chipping away at their game. You can just tell.”
–Field Level Media
