“Connor McDavid was very clear,” Button stated. “He said, ‘I have no problem staying in Edmonton if we have a team that can win and win and win again.’ A very clear message. Then his actions spoke even louder. He said, ‘Hey, listen, I’m going to give you the benefit of me taking this contract so you can go and strengthen the team in your way.’ So, it’s clear. The mandate is clearly on Stan Bowman and on the management team.”

“I keep going back to 2024, the summer of 2024. They had [Dylan] Holloway. They had [Philip] Broberg. They had [Ryan] McLeod. Drafted players, two first-round draft picks. They had an opportunity with Warren Foegele. It seems that once they let those guys go, all they’ve been doing is chasing, trying to find players that can replace those guys. And to this point in time, it’s fallen short.”

“You see them in fits and spurts. You see some good, you see some negative. But most importantly, you see them not being able to sustain a really good, strong level of play. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, postgame, talked about, ‘Yeah, we do some things well. And then we sit back and we let the team carry the puck and they gain some confidence and whatnot.’ That hurts them. They got some real issues.”

“Connor McDavid isn’t going to wait for time. He’s not here to fiddle with the dials. We saw in 2024 in that series for the Florida Panthers, post-series, how angry he got. I would suggest, if this team doesn’t show signs, and I’m talking about the management team, show signs, that they’re going to work to improve this team, you might get an even angrier Connor McDavid.”