The Edmonton Oilers are dealing with a worst-case scenario – an injury to superstar captain Connor McDavid; the injury occurred during Monday night’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena.
McDavid fell awkwardly while chasing a loose puck into the offensive zone, with his left leg absorbing most of the impact against the boards. He left the game, and the Oilers soon announced that his night was over. He’s returning to Edmonton for further evaluation while his teammates continue their road swing.
The game couldn’t have gone worse for the Oilers, who fell by a 6-1 final score to the Blue Jackets thanks to an exceptionally poor outing from goaltender Stuart Skinner.
One key member of the Oilers who will need to step up their game in McDavid’s absence is forward Ryan-Nugent Hopkins, who called out the rest of his teammates for their lack of response to the injury in the wake of the disappointing loss, via X.
“Yeah, I mean, of course, he’s our leader and also the best player in the game,” he said. “Of course, you’re going to feel it. We got to do a better job of stepping up when a guy like that goes down, though.”
The Oilers, who were 24 hours removed from a 3-2 overtime win over the Detroit Red Wings in Detroit, offered little resistance against the Blue Jackets. They’ll take on the Nashville Predators on Thursday.
Oilers captain Connor McDavid returned to Edmonton for evaluation
The Oilers released a concerning update shortly after the final horn against the Blue Jackets, as it was announced that McDavid would not be joining his teammates for the remainder of their road trip and would instead return back to Edmonton for further evaluation.
The reigning Conn Smythe Trophy winner as the Most Valuable Player in the 2024 postseason despite being on the losing side, McDavid has registered three goals and seven assists in 10 games played in 2024-25.
