There is no doubt Connor McDavid is the next generational player. This takes nothing away from any of the other highly sought after 2015 prospects such as Eichel, Hanifin, Strome and so on; however Connor McDavid has undoubtedly distanced himself from the rest of the pack.
Connor McDavid is the big prize in this year’s draft and each and every team would love to win him in the lottery draft. As of now Buffalo stands the best chance to win the McDavid sweepstakes with a 20% chance of drafting the young stud. Is it possible that he will be as good as Crosby…or dare I say better? It’s much too early to give a concrete answer as he has yet to play a game in the National Hockey League, but even comparing him to Crosby at this point in his young career speaks volumes.
April is a big month for hockey, not only will the playoffs be just around the corner; but Connor will find out which team will have the privilege of drafting him 1st overall at the draft. Most of us saw McDavid play in the World Junior tournament this year (2014/15) and he was a phenom. He was also coming off an injured hand from a fight, so it took him a couple games to knock off any rust and then we saw the real Connor McDavid…who in my opinion stood out much more than Eichel, especially in the Canada vs USA game.
Taking a glance at the stats he has produced since joining the Erie Otters back in 2012/13 where he started and will finish his OHL career he ended up with 25 goals, 41 assists in 63 games. The Otters were certainly not a good team at the time as his +/- was -24. Since then he has emerged as an absolutely dominant force…in 2013/14 he upped his totals gathering 28 goals, 71 assists in 56 games and turned that +/- stat around to a whopping +47. That season the Otters made the playoffs and he put up 19 points in 14 games and was a beast for Erie. Would it surprise you that he wears the C on his jersey this season for Erie and has absolutely exploded on the score sheet? It shouldn’t! McDavid is a force on the ice, in only 39 games this season he has 37 goals and 65 assists…yes, you are reading that correctly as that’s 102 points in 39 games, and +46. Pure domination to say the least!
Connor has represented his Country in International play three times, WHC-17, WJC-18 and of course this year in the WJC-20. In those 26 games played throughout the three years, he has 38 points. The competition in these tournaments is very high, so to put up those numbers; it shows you he really is the real deal.
Personally I wonder where he will end up; logic points to Buffalo but they still only have a 20% chance, so in the big picture of things…there is still an 80% chance he ends up in another city on another team. No General Manager in their right mind would consider trading their first round pick unless they are certain they will make the playoffs and fall out of the lottery for the prize of McDavid. Again, this is not taking anything away from Eichel as he is also a great player and would be welcomed to any team; an excellent consolation prize.
Where would be the best spot for Connor to end up, and why?
Buffalo:
With Buffalo being in the gutter for the entirety of this season and unloading any and all players who had any worth in a trade you can see Buffalo means business and they want McDavid badly. They have a lot of very young prospects coming up through the pipeline and there is no doubt having McDavid on their team would get them not only on track quicker, but would likely turn them into a powerhouse in the near future.
Toronto:
The epicenter of hockey exists in Toronto doesn’t it? Well, maybe, but the Leafs have been awful for years and years, the last truly competitive team they had was in 1993 and as we all know they haven’t won the cup since 1967. The addition of McDavid to the Leafs organization would be like winning a Cup, I kid you not it would be out of this world how the Leafs fans would react…Think about the money that would be made solely from jersey sales before the season even started. I’d imagine it would be somewhat close to an entire years’ worth of jersey sales NHL wide; and I’m not exaggerating. Things are rock bottom in Toronto right now and this could be the best thing to happen to the Leafs since Sundin, Gilmour and Clark.
Carolina:
What a terrible start to the year for the Hurricanes, injuries to some of their most important players ( i.e. Skinner, J. Staal). Amazing how a healthy Skinner and a Jordan Staal back in the lineup have drastically changed how the Canes have been playing since the New Year. I mean it’s night and day…If they continue to play so well they will hinder their chances and odds of drafting Connor McDavid. Imagine though, Carolina is a team that has been on track for 100 points since 2015 began. Adding in a possible dynasty making center… That is something to think about for you Carolina fans…
Arizona:
With Arizona I think about one thing and one thing only…Bettman. This is his team so to speak… they have been a hot topic of discussion over the last few years as the franchise was almost moved several times. They lose money every season and have had a disaster of a time bringing in people to watch games. Even the legendary Wayne Gretzky coached the Coyotes back in the day and was screwed over by the NHL as they owed him money. Things have been settled as far as I know, but is this really a spot you want to put the most highly sought after player since Crosby? Personally, I don’t think so. He would literally be playing in front of a home crowed that doesn’t appreciate him like he would be in many other markets. The difference between him in Arizona and Toronto would be one end of the spectrum to another…and I really don’t think him being in Arizona would save the franchise; I think it would be a waste of such talent.
Edmonton:
McDavid in Edmonton? Another first pick overall? It could happen, it’s very possible. Edmonton needs defense more than it needs another high point producing forward, but I think if they got the first pick overall they would have to take McDavid; and then think about offloading some of their other young talent that has struggled over the years. I’m certainly not against Edmonton adding McDavid to their roster; they have been the worst team for years, almost an embarrassment. Could he be the piece they need to turn the franchise around and get on track and back to the winning ways? Maybe he would be the perfect fit and the Oilers can finally make some big trades to fill some much needed voids.
The lottery for the first pick overall is ludicrous if you ask me. I’ve said before, I don’t like how there is any transparency what so ever when it comes to the lottery pick. Nothing should be done behind closed doors and everyone should be able to see the lotto happen with their own eyes so there is no way the lottery could be tampered with. Is that really too much to ask? I don’t think so…
Where do you think McDavid ends up?
Do you think there will be any side action going on where powerhouses like Toronto try and use their money to get McDavid? After all, Bell and Rogers have the big television deal with the NHL…Maybe Bettman and the boys see this to be a huge profitable move by the NHL to get McDavid in the blue and white? Far-fetched? No doubt about it…but nothing is out of the question as the NHL is a business after all. Perhaps they ‘owe’ it to the Maple Leafs organization who has kept the NHL afloat financially over the years? It’s hard not to think about conspiracy theories regarding the lottery process when you can’t actually see each and every step of the lottery take place and thinking back the Penguins “winning… the Sidney Crosby draft lottery which essentially saved their franchise…
I hope you enjoyed the read and I look forward to hearing your opinion in the comments section.
Thanks for reading.