McDavid makes NHL history as Oilers beat Rangers

Connor McDavid’s favourite barn to play in is none other than Madison Square Garden.

And on Sunday night, he put on a show in front of 18,006 fans when his Edmonton Oilers took on the New York Rangers in a 4-1 win; it took all of 50 seconds for him to make his mark on the game, dancing through the neutral zone, before leaving Vladislav Gavrikov’s jockstrap in the rafters. Netminder Dylan Garand had no chance, as McDavid chipped a puck short side, leaving kids in the front row behind the Rangers net with their jaws on the floor.

That’s a goal they’ll never forgot, and a game they never will forget.

It wasn’t just the goal for McDavid, though, who, in his 15th game of the season, became the fastest player in NHL history to record 30 assists in a season, setting up Evan Bouchard later in the game. Faster than Wayne Gretzky, who reached 30 in 16 games in 1984-85.

Just another day in the office.

“You know what, it’s actually been really fun to have new things here in Edmonton,” said McDavid after the game, when asked if he takes time to reflect and appreciate milestones like these. “It’s been really fun to just dive in and just have to sink your teeth into a new system, a new kind of way of playing, and it’s kind of left my own game secondary.

“(I’m) just trying to take care of the things that I need to do within the system. Those things have been happening and it’s kind of just been a byproduct of everybody playing well. When the team is winning games, individual stuff happens like that. (I’ve) definitely been the benefactor of some great team play.”

Other benefactors of Edmonton’s new systems, too.

Take Colton Dach, for example. After starting the season playing up the middle of the ice due to a plethora of injuries and the coach’s belief in his ability to play there, he’s transitioned back to his natural wing, looking like a new player. It culminated in a two-goal performance against the Rangers, scoring 6:19 into the first period when he fired a puck through Garand’s five-hole, before sealing the game with an empty-net goal.

Matt Tomkins was another beneficiary, making his first start for the Oilers and his first in the NHL since April 2014, and he was nearly perfect, turning aside 27 of 28 shots and helping weather the storms the Rangers brought.

“I thought he was good,” said Oilers head coach Mike Babcock about Tomkins’ performance. “I thought we were fortunate to get off to a good start, and I think that makes your goalie feel comfortable.

“When we needed him in the second, when we weren’t as good, I thought he was real good. He’s got to feel good about himself, and we feel good about it. Anytime you give up one goal, it’s a real positive thing.”

For the Oilers, their game continues to evolve in ways many have longed for. The focus is on the defensive zone before the offensive zone, keeping pucks out of their own net before trying to get pucks into the opposition’s net. Beyond the first two games of the season, where the Oilers gave up a combined 13 goals against to the Vancouver Canucks, the team has given up just 1.81 goals against per hour at five-on-five, according to Natural Stat Trick — the fourth-best rate in the league.

They also have gone through a stretch of three games giving up only one goal against for the eighth time in franchise history, and just the third time in the regular season.

Now, they prepare to cap off their three-game road trip with a visit to the New Jersey Devils. It’ll be another test for the Oilers, as the Prudential Center is a barn that’s chewed up and spit out Edmonton in recent years, with the team going 0-4 in their last four games there, outscored 13-6.