Can Connor McDavid score 70 goals this season?
Today on Daily Faceoff Live, Tyler Yaremchuk and Matt Larkin discuss Connor McDavid hitting the 60-goal mark and whether or not he can continue his hot streak and reach 70 goals this season.
Tyler Yaremchuk: Well, number 97 did his thing, started the night by scoring goal number 59 and then, ended the night with goal number 60. The second straight year we have had an NHL player score 60 goals. McDavid doing it in just 72 games, it’s been a remarkable run for the Oilers captain. One of the most productive series in NHL history when you consider the era. Matt, is 70 goals still possible for McDavid with just 10 games to go?
Matt Larkin: How crazy is it that this is a legitimate question? It is, it’s legit. He’s the fastest player to hit 60, did it in 72 games beating Auston Matthews by one game and the fastest since Mario Lemieux which was 27 years ago. If you look at the pace for McDavid this season, 72 games sample size he averages is 8.33 goals per 10 games. There are still 10 games left, if he just hovers along at his “average” that already puts him projected for 68 goals. If you look at McDavid’s career pattern, this guy is a finisher and he always has some sort of big milestone or benchmark to hit by the end of the season, and he always turns it up. If you look at his career points per game, for March, April and May it’s 1.69 points per game and every other month it’s 1.42 so he always turns it up. If I had to place a bet right now, I’d say he’s going to do it. We’ve seen him go on these late-season runs before and how could you bet against Connor McDavid in terms of anything right now?
Tyler Yaremchuk: Yeah, he’s gone on long goal streaks this year. He had five straight games from Feb 21st to March 5th where he scored multiple goals in those games and had 10 goals over a five-game stretch. He’s shooting a best 20% this year, and he’s ripping the puck this year. You can tell he really wants it, seven shots on the net in back-to-back games for McDavid. He could’ve scored three or four last night if a couple of bounces went his way. The other thing, Edmonton has some weak opponents down the stretch, they play Anaheim twice, San Jose twice and Arizona once as well. Those are five games where he could score six or seven in just those five games alone.
Matt Larkin: Absolutely and with the way he’s playing right now he’s so explosive he could score six in a two-game span and just be walking to 70 by the end of it. He’s just capable of anything right now. I really think what we’re seeing is the most dominant offensive player since Wayne Gretzky, not Mario Lemieux. He’s on pace to win the scoring race by the biggest margin in 36 years.
You can watch the full episode here…