The Edmonton Oilers made it to the Stanley Cup Final for the second straight season, and they faced the same opponent in the Florida Panthers. Unfortunately, they came up short again and weren’t able to end their long championship drought.
Related: Oilers Lose Second Straight Cup Final: Where Do They Go From Here?
As soon as the Oilers failed to pick up the series win, rumours began to spread about the future of Connor McDavid in Edmonton, considering his contract expires at the end of the 2025-26 season. While no indications have been made that he would even entertain an offer elsewhere, that didn’t stop pundits from creating ridiculous fantasies for potential McDavid blockbuster deals. One of the most ridiculous ones saw him getting traded to the Florida Panthers.
What would Panthers trade package for McDavid hypothetically look like?
WATCH: https://t.co/QMmJggtjKr pic.twitter.com/bYMAzdN46b
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) June 18, 2025
In the segment, it was viewed purely as a hypothetical, and the hosts were sure to indicate that something like this was unlikely. However, they still moved forward with potential mock trades if the Panthers pursued McDavid, and they were atrocious. Someone suggested Sasha Barkov, Seth Jones, and Sergei Bobrovsky as the starting point, but was met with a response that shocked viewers, as another host hinted that it could be too high of an asking price, and that would be too much.
Too high? Really?
If McDavid is open to a trade and informs the Oilers he is leaving, that trade offer is laughed at by the entire Oilers organization. Let’s be honest, the Panthers would have to consider moving Matthew Tkachuk, Sasha Barkov, Carter Verhaeghe, and Mackie Samoskevich, on top of at least three first-round picks, before the Oilers even consider calling them back. McDavid is on pace to be one of the best players to ever play the game, so a deal like that doesn’t even come close to the realm of possibility. That’s also without mentioning how difficult it would be to make the money work, so a deal like this shouldn’t even be talked about; it’s ridiculous.
The co-hosts responded to this hypothetical idea as “idiotic” and “stupid” and tried to laugh it off, before continuing, with one even saying: “who cares, we go viral, great, go ahead.”
McDavid Will Become Highest-Paid Player on Next Deal
Let’s get back to reality.
When McDavid re-signs with the Oilers, he will become the highest-paid player in the NHL. Leon Draisaitl currently holds that title with a $14 million cap hit annually, but he will be passed by his teammate. With the salary cap expected to rise significantly over the next several seasons, it wouldn’t surprise anyone to see him get a long-term extension worth upwards of $16 million annually, and the Oilers will be willing to pay him whatever he wants to keep him around.
The Oilers will have to figure out how to make the rest of their roster work to not only keep McDavid around but also make sure they can ice a competitive lineup consistently so they can continue contending for a Stanley Cup. It will be tough, but not impossible.
Either way, the future of the Oilers includes McDavid, and any rumour that connects him to any other team in the NHL is purely hypothetical; they should be taken with a grain of salt. McDavid will take his time before extending, which is the same thing Draisaitl did, and fans shouldn’t panic.
He’ll extend with the Oilers; it’s a matter of when, not if.
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