Why there should be no panic about Connor McDavid reaching free agency

It’s easy to look at the clips strewn across social media and gather the most important thing from Connor McDavid’s words that he’s leaving the door open to leave the Edmonton Oilers.

“We’re all in this together, trying to get it over that finish line. With that being said, ultimately, we still need to do what’s best for me and my family.”

On the surface, his comments in his exit press conference Thursday undoubtedly are something that could raise red flags, just like they were raised in January 2024 when Leon Draisaitl said, about he and McDavid potentially signing long-term in Edmonton, “He’s going to do what’s best for him and I’m going to do what’s best for me. Last September, three months after he became eligible to sign an extension, Draisaitl put pen to paper on a record-breaking contract that made him the highest-paid player in the league, keeping him in Edmonton for eight more years.

Things can change in a flash, and even at the time of Draisaitl’s comments, there wasn’t much to believe that he would be leaving Edmonton anytime soon. While he was adamant on Thursday in his desire for McDavid to stay — public lobbying he’s done for some time — McDavid could’ve buried any thought of him playing elsewhere, but he didn’t.

He left the door open to possibilities, but make no mistake — he knows what he’s doing. This is someone who has been in the spotlight for over a decade already, and somebody who is careful with his words.

There’s one thing and one thing only that Connor McDavid wants: to hoist the Stanley Cup. He’s said so in the past, and he reiterated it Thursday.

“(It’s) tough to focus on the good stuff two days out after that disappointment,” he said. “Sure, as time goes on, we’ll look back on another successful run, I guess, making it to the finals and two games away.

“I’m sure there’ll be a little bit of that, but at the end of the day, I get up here every year and tell you that it’s all about winning, and it’s only about winning, and we won’t be satisfied until that’s done.”

The question then becomes, where does he feel like he can win? Is it in Edmonton with an organization that has committed everything they feel they can to making this team better on the ice so McDavid can bring Lord Stanley’s Mug home? Or is it with another franchise?

A lack of commitment on Thursday makes it seem — at least to those who weren’t fully paying attention — that he feels there’s a chance that he could be with another franchise. But when you actually dig into what he said, is it really something that fans and followers of the team should be worried about?

“Three days ago, we were two games from winning,” he said when asked if he thinks the Oilers give him the best chance to do win a Stanley Cup. “Last year, we were two shots away from winning.

“The belief is incredibly high in that room. We talked about that all throughout the playoffs, and we do believe that this group can win and will win. To hope that answers your question, I would say yeah.”

McDavid is a player who has always lived in the moment, focused on what was immediately in front of him. If it’s in the regular season, he’s looking at the next game ahead, the next road trip, or the next homestand. If it’s in the playoffs, that view narrows even more to a game-by-game basis. To paraphrase the last point, “We have to win the next one.”

So what’s in his sights now? Getting ready for the next season.

“I think the team is certainly positioned to be really good again next year,” he said of the team’s window to win. “Really good again next year. Beyond that, I don’t know or care. We’re worried about next year, and that’s the only focus.”

Still not convinced the snippets shared on social media don’t paint the full picture of where McDavid’s thought process is?

“My message to the fans would be to keep being patient and keep believing in them because they’ve been through a lot, obviously, as you said, just like our team has, the emotional highs, the lows,” he said. “I look at what these playoff runs do to my family. It’s hard on them. It’s hard on the fans. It’s hard on everybody.

“But ultimately, when that day comes, it’ll all be worth it. These moments are tough now, and it’s tough to look to that. But when that moment comes, it’ll be worth the wait for sure.”

And even when he was asked for his thoughts about pending restricted free agent Evan Bouchard, McDavid said inking him to an extension was “definitely a deal that needs to get done and one that is really important for us.”

Those comments aren’t ones that make me think he has his sights set on being anywhere but Edmonton.

It hasn’t always been pretty — in fact, it’s often turned out ugly — but whichever general manager has been in the chair, they’ve shown a steadfast commitment to making the Oilers as competitive as they can every single year.

And for those who doubt it, the organization’s ability to improve, since 2015-16, they’ve played the fourth most playoff games, 96, of any team in the league. Since 2021-22, their 75 playoff games are second to the Florida Panthers, and 12 up on the third-placed Dallas Stars.

It’s easy to get caught up in the news cycle and the hubbub when a player like McDavid speaks — doubly so when you look at what he’s had to deal with in Edmonton over the course of his 10 years. But like was the case with Draisaitl, it truly feels like it’s only a matter of time before he puts pen to paper.