Edmonton Oilers’ Connor McDavid is turning playoff dreams into reality

Try as they might, the Kings couldn’t stop Connor McDavid. Heck, they could barely manage to slow him down.

How can you blame them for allowing McDavid to record five points on six Oilers goals over the last two games, culminating with as one-sided a 2-0 win as you’ll see in Game 7?

These might have been the best back-to-back performances of McDavid’s NHL career. Though there were plenty of excellent performances from his teammates as well, McDavid drove the Oilers to two victories while facing elimination. He was instrumental in helping them earn their first playoff series win in five years.

When he’s at his peak, there’s simply nothing defences can do. And, give McDavid — one of the most intelligent players in the game — two weeks to study an opponent, and the advantage shifts further in his direction.

“He can figure that stuff out. He’s watching what you’re doing,” Oilers Hall of Fame defenceman Paul Coffey said. “He’s watching what everybody else is doing. I’ve seen him do that a number of times. A guy like Connor, you just try to neutralize him as best as you can.”

If a Kings player or coach was hooked up to a polygraph and claimed they were able to do that, the machine would blow up. It would be a bald-faced lie.

McDavid was “otherworldly,” to borrow a word often used by Oilers coach Jay Woodcroft.

Give credit to Mike Smith for his second shutout of the series. Kudos goes to Cody Ceci for scoring maybe the biggest goal of his career, and the most important one in a Game 7 for the franchise since Todd Marchant’s overtime winner 25 years ago. Heap praise on Leon Draisaitl for gutting through 22:38 despite looking like he could barely push off on his injured right ankle or leg. A few others deserve some flowers as well.

But there’s no question who stole the show over the last two games.

“You guys were witness to what I was witness to,” Woodcroft said. “The one thing I kept going back to is that he’s driven to win. He’s a fantastic teammate. He’s a leader who leads by example, and I’m happy for him.

“Two really, really good hockey games on his part.”

McDavid’s goal and assist gave him 14 points in seven games, leading all players so far. If the Conn Smythe Trophy was awarded after the first round, he’d have to be the favourite.

McDavid was named a finalist for the Hart Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award this week. He might not win either prize in June, but Thursday’s and Saturday’s performances reaffirmed his true ranking.

“He’s the best player in the world and he showed that in the last two games,” Draisaitl said. “There’s lots of skill with him — that’s a given — but it’s the will. You can see it in his eyes. You can feel it every shift that he’s out there. He’s determined.

“There was no way he, or us, were going to be denied. He led the way. He was amazing.”

Coming off an incredible three-point effort to help the Oilers stave off elimination in Game 6, a contest in which he played 24:02, McDavid might have been even better in the winner-take-all series finale.

Woodcroft used him 27:23, almost five minutes more than the banged-up Draisaitl and nearly six minutes more than the Kings’ top two centres, Anze Kopitar and Phillip Danault.

McDavid was an unstoppable force. Per Natural Stat Trick, the Oilers out-attempted the Kings 40-24, outshot them 21-11 and outscored them 2-0 at five-on-five with McDavid on the ice in 23:40. McDavid had a 72.4 expected goals percentage.

The Oilers controlled the game. That was particularly true when McDavid hopped over the boards.

The two points he recorded would have been much greater had his teammates capitalized on a few more chances. The prime example came when Kailer Yamamoto hit the post on a wide-open net less than five minutes into the third period after a feed from McDavid.

“I can be here for a long time telling you all the things he can do,” Smith said. “He was a determined player. You could see on his face that he wanted it more than anybody else on the ice and everybody else jumped on his back and followed his lead.”

Will combined with skill is a scary combination. That’s especially the case when that skill is second to none.

McDavid was flying on Saturday, as he is wont to do. He was changing direction on a dime, twisting and turning in the offensive zone. The Kings defenders just couldn’t keep up.

The first Oilers goal exemplified that. McDavid, Draisaitl and Yamamoto controlled the puck in the Los Angeles end for the entire shift. Finally, McDavid received a pass, spun away from Kopitar, used the net as a shield and then found Ceci alone.

“He is a world-class player,” Ceci said. “We have to see him in practice all the time and he has another level in games and especially this series. There is definitely some sympathy there (for the Kings blueliners). I am just happy he is on our team.

“He has put a lot of time into this organization and worked really hard to be the best in the world. You saw his will to win in this series and it was fun to be a part of.”

McDavid’s goal, with 3:53 left in regulation, was the perfect blend of that will and skill.

After taking a pass from Yamamoto, McDavid got the inside lane on Kings defenceman Sean Durzi and burst past him. Durzi was forced to hook him to negate a clear scoring chance. With a penalty upcoming, McDavid grabbed the puck behind the net, tried a wraparound, grabbed the rebound and then backhanded a shot over down-and-out goaltender Jonathan Quick.

“He can change direction so fast. He’s got unbelievable vision. He can shoot the puck quick. He can find players,” Smith said. “He’s a special talent.

“To raise his play after what he’s done in the regular season, to see what he’s done in the playoffs … it’s easy to jump on board with a captain and leader like that.”

McDavid’s celebration said all you need to know about the importance of the goal.

“We had a lot of chances to make it 2-0, even late in the second and early in the third,” McDavid said. “You don’t like missing those chances. They were kind of hanging in around, so it felt good to be able to go up by two and have that bigger cushion.”

The two goals McDavid created showcased his wide array of talents. Just ask Jets defenceman Josh Morrissey about them.

Morrissey knows McDavid well, having played with him for Canada at two world juniors and against him in the playoffs last year.

“When Connor gets going underneath from his own end with speed or in a neutral zone, if you’re a little bit flatfooted or he gets a half step on you, you know you’re in big trouble,” Morrissey said. “You can see his speed and how lethal that is. Connor can cycle you and beat you off the cycle and score as well.

“Sometimes you just have to hope for the best.”

That’s the feeling Coffey has when watching him play, too.

“The way you defend Connor McDavid is not one-on-one; it’s as a team,” he said. “That being said, I’ve seen him get away from most things, too. He’s tough to defend.”

The Kings found that out the hard way. They had few answers for him in the series — and none when it mattered most.

As a result, the Oilers are among the elite eight for the first time since 2017. That’s when McDavid was a sophomore in the league and a first-year captain, and Woodcroft was an Oilers assistant coach under Todd McLellan.

“It’s an important win. We’re not planning on stopping here,” Woodcroft said. “We didn’t come this far just to come this far.”

If McDavid continues playing this way, there’s little reason to believe the Oilers can be stopped.

(Photo: Codie McLachlan / Getty Images)