Welcome to my annual player review series, where I dive into the Edmonton Oilers season player-by-player. We’ll look back at the season that was, what kind of impact each player had, and what we could see from them next season. You can read about the analytics behind my analysis here.
Here’s the deal about Connor McDavid: he’s really, really good at hockey.
So good that when it’s all said and done, he might go down as the best player of all-time. He already ranks 92nd in terms of adjusted points, according to Hockey-Reference, and among the top 100, he’s seventh in adjusted points per game, with 1.64. He’s right behind Wayne Gretzky (1.66) and Mario Lemieux (1.68), with the top four of Howie Morenz (2.23), Frank Boucher (2.07), Aurele Joliat (1.81) and Nels Stewart (1.80) having played last in 1944.
McDavid’s 2023-24 campaign continued to build on his previous career sucess, scoring 32 goals, 100 assists and 132 points in 76 games. He got off to a sluggish start through his first 11 games, scoring a point per game which was still half of what his previous three years saw him produce. He attributed it to overtraining last off-season, a regiment he changed around this summer.
He more than made up for it, becoming the fourth player in NHL history to score 100 assists in a season. When the playoffs rolled around, McDavid peaked in the playoffs, scoring eight goals, 34 assists and 42 points. His assist total became the highest in a single playoff ever, surpassing Gretzky’s record of 31, and becoming the third player to score 40 points in a single playoff.
McDavid continued to be a huge driver of play, with excellent underlying numbers. According to Hockey Viz, he drove offence at a 26 percent rate above league average, defence at a six percent rate above league average while contributing on both the power play and penalty kill, both at six percent rates above league average. His contributions continue to break the Hockey Viz charts, with this past season seeing him contribute at five time the rate of an average first-line player.
There’s nobody in the game like Connor McDavid and he will continue to push the boundaries of what players can do.

CONNOR MCDAVID’S CAREER SO FAR

Regular SeasonPlayoffs
SeasonTeamLgeGPGAPtsPIM+/-GPGAPtsPIM
2012-13
Erie Otters
OHL
63
25
41
66
36
-24
—
—
—
—
—
2013-14
Erie Otters
OHL
56
28
71
99
20
47
14
4
15
19
2
2014-15
Erie Otters
OHL
47
44
76
120
48
60
20
21
28
49
12
2015-16
Edmonton Oilers
NHL
45
16
32
48
18
-1
—
—
—
—
—
2016-17
Edmonton Oilers
NHL
82
30
70
100
26
27
13
5
4
9
2
2017-18
Edmonton Oilers
NHL
82
41
67
108
26
20
—
—
—
—
—
2018-19
Edmonton Oilers
NHL
78
41
75
116
20
3
—
—
—
—
—
2019-20
Edmonton Oilers
NHL
64
34
63
97
28
-6
4
5
4
9
2
2020-21
Edmonton Oilers
NHL
56
33
72
105
20
21
4
1
3
4
0
2021-22
Edmonton Oilers
NHL
80
44
79
123
45
28
16
10
23
33
10
2022-23
Edmonton Oilers
NHL
82
64
89
153
36
22
12
8
12
20
0
2023-24
Edmonton Oilers
NHL
76
32
100
132
30
35
25
8
34
42
10
NHL Totals
645
335
647
982
249
74
37
80
117
24

PLAYERS REVIEWED SO FAR

Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@thenationnetwork.com.

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