Connor McDavid Hasn’t Been Himself vs the Ducks – The Hockey Writers – Edmonton Oilers

Something’s up with Connor McDavid. In the first three games of the Pacific Division opening round series between the Edmonton Oilers and the Anaheim Ducks, McDavid hasn’t been his usual fast and creative self. In fact, even before he rolled over on his ankle in Game 2, he was uncharacteristically giving the puck away, making blind passes and looking anything like the best player in the world.

McDavid Might Be Human Afterall

Every athlete in professional sports has their limits, no matter how great they are. I think McDavid might’ve hit a bit of a wall even before the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs began. The amount of hockey, pressure situations and travel McDavid has experienced in the last three seasons has been enormous.

Two Stanley Cup Finals, the 4-Nations Faceoff and the Winter Olympics have all contributed to McDavid looking like he needs a rest, a time to reset and retool. He puts a lot of pressure on himself to win, but the amount of pressure he’s played through, not to mention the travel and injury, might have all caught up to him this spring.

Ducks Are Playing McDavid Tough

McDavid will be the first one not to use injury or fatigue as an excuse for why he and the Oilers have struggled against the Ducks. The fact is, the Ducks, including young defenceman Jackson LaCombe, are smothering McDavid so far in the series. Give lots of credit to LaCombe and the talented Ducks roster for how well they’ve kept McDavid in check because they deserve it. The Ducks’ coaching staff, led by head coach Joel Quenneville and assistant coach Jay Woodcroft have also done a masterful job of containing McDavid and all of the Oilers’ top players, for that matter.

Oilers Go as McDavid Goes

Take McDavid off the Oilers roster, and you’ve got a middle-of-the-pack team, even if they still have great players such as Leon Draisaitl, Zach Hyman, and Evan Bouchard, who is also struggling mightily against the Ducks. McDavid, along with Draisaitl, has been responsible for covering up so many deficiencies over the years that it can be concerning when you see the two of them looking ordinary. Even though Draisaitl just returned from a lengthy time on the injured reserve list before the playoffs, he, too, hasn’t quite looked like the old Draisaitl in this series against the Ducks.

No Excuses, Just Facing Reality

The Oilers could decide to get it together and start playing sound defensive hockey, tie the series up with the Ducks and go on to win it. It’s not really looking that way, though. It might be time to face facts that the window to win the Stanley Cup with McDavid might soon be over. Everyone from Oilers owner Daryl Katz, CEO of hockey operations Jeff Jackson, general manager Stan Bowman and head coach Kris Knoblauch must take some responsibility for the shortcomings of the team during the McDavid era.

Rest and Reset Could Be What McDavid and the Oilers Need For One Last Run

If the Oilers do go on to lose this series against the Ducks, there could be a small silver lining for the franchise. McDavid, Draisaitl and the team need time to rest and heal not only physically but also psychologically. The Oilers have McDavid signed for two more seasons; they will have some cap space to play with in the offseason, and maybe management can take the time to get things right from the goaltending up to injecting more speed into the lineup. However, before we really start getting way ahead of ourselves, let’s see what happens in Game 4. McDavid might have another miracle or two left in him.