‘Thankfully I got good news’: Oilers’ Connor McDavid shares thoughts on injury

Arguably the best player in the game today has opened up about his recent injury.

Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid spoke to the media on Monday after participating in the team’s optional skate. It was the first time the reigning Conn Smythe Trophy winner talked since he suffered an ankle injury last Monday against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

McDavid admitted that getting hurt left cause for concern, but feels better after finding out his ailment is not severe.

“When it first happens obviously you’re concerned that it’s something a little more serious,” McDavid said. “But thankfully, I got good news on it.”

The 27-year-old didn’t look like he was going full-tilt on the ice on Monday but looked to be moving well, given the fact he was hurt just seven days ago.

McDavid suffered the injury on the opening shift of the Oilers’ 6-1 loss to the Blue Jackets in Columbus. He fell while skating the puck into the offensive zone, inadvertently hitting the sideboards before sliding into the corner. When skating off the ice, it looked as if he was favoring his left leg.

The shift lasted a total of 37 seconds, and he didn’t return after that. It was later announced that McDavid would miss 2-3 weeks with the ankle injury.

So far in the 2024-25 season, McDavid has scored three goals and seven assists for 10 points in 10 games, averaging over 20 minutes per game.

Lower-body injuries are nothing new to the Newmarket, Ontario native. McDavid hurt his knee in the final game of the 2018-19 season, though he was able to make it back in time for the start of the following season. He also missed three games last April with a lower-body injury. An upper-body injury kept McDavid out of the lineup for two games last October as well.

McDavid infamously suffered a fractured collarbone two months into his rookie season, which kept him off the ice for almost three months.

In the first nine years of his NHL career, McDavid won the Art Ross Trophy five times, winning the Rocket Richard Trophy after scoring 64 goals in 2022-23. He is a three-time Hart Trophy winner as league MVP and a four-time Ted Lindsay Award winner.

In 654 games, McDavid has scored 338 goals and 654 assists for 992 points, including 117 points in 74 playoff games. Last spring, as the Oilers made it to the Stanley Cup Final, he notched 42 points in 25 games.