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Connor McDavid's 'One-Off' Message After Oilers' Game 1 Collapse vs. Stars

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Antonio Losada | Last updated May 23, 2025 8:40 AM ET

Connor McDavid dismissed suggestions that the Edmonton Oilers’ Game 1 collapse against the Dallas Stars reflects a pattern of giving up leads.

Asked about the Oilers' failure to capitalize on a 3-1 lead entering the third period, McDavid called the 6-3 loss in the Western Conference Final opener a "one-off," not a trend.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday, McDavid pushed back on the notion that Edmonton has a problem closing games.

“No, we’ve been good with leads for the most part of the year,” McDavid said. “So it’s not a trend, it’s not a trait or anything like that. It’s just, we’ll call it a one-off.”

The Oilers have only lost one game—Game 3 of the series against the Vegas Golden Knights—this season after starting the game with a multi-goal lead.

#Oilers forwards Connor McDavid & Ryan Nugent-Hopkins address the media today in Dallas. @Enterprise | #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/7e6C5g63n5
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) May 22, 2025

Three of Dallas' five unanswered goals in Game 1 came on the power play as Edmonton spent six of the final 20 minutes shorthanded.

“Stick penalties are avoidable, some weak ones too,” McDavid said. “I didn’t necessarily believe that all of them were maybe penalties, but that’s the game.”

McDavid finished the game with two assists and four shots on goal, but earned a minus-1 plus/minus valuation.

The Oilers captain has 19 points in 12 playoff games and is tied for second with teammate Leon Draisaitl in total points.

Despite the result, McDavid emphasized there were still positives to take from the performance.

“Ultimately, there’s a lot of positives that come out of last night,” McDavid said. “Would love to find a way to turn that into a win. But we didn’t, so we move on and we’ll be ready for game two.”

Game 2 is scheduled for Friday in Dallas, with puck drop set at 8 p.m. ET.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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