Connor McDavid Calls Oilers ‘Average’ Following Dissapointing First Round Exit To Ducks

The Edmonton Oilers have once again disappointingly exited the Stanley Cup playoffs; however, this time it was a first-round exit after making the Stanley Cup final two consecutive years.

Connor McDavid didn’t hold back on how he felt about this year’s Oilers team, calling them “an average team” following a game six and series loss to the Anaheim Ducks.

“It was tough. We were an average team all year. An average team with high expectations. You’re going to be disappointed,” McDavid said postgame after the 5-2 loss.

This was the first time the Oilers failed to make it out of the first round since 2021, revealing that McDavid is not wrong about calling them “average,” in what may be a direct shot at general manager Stan Bowman.

McDavid didn’t look like his normal self during the series, with people questioning his health. He only scored once and had six points in six games.

“Too hurt, too soon. The first round is always tough. It’s always chaotic, and it’s tough to play through things so early on as many guys did in here,” McDavid added.

“That being said, it’s not an excuse, either. We expected to have a longer run than we did. It is what it is.”

With the early exit and failing to win the big one once again, speculation swirls about McDavid’s future in Edmonton. McDavid signed a two-year extension last October, giving the Oilers until the 2028 offseason to build a Stanley Cup-caliber team around him.

“I obviously said I was committed to winning here, and I meant that when I said that, and two years makes a lot of sense,” McDavid said last season.

Oilers and McDavid have a long off-season ahead of them in hopes of reaching their end goal and lifting the Stanley Cup.

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Article by Sam Lanier