Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers after scoring his 60th goal of 2023, in just 72 games. Photo by Perry Nelson via USA TODAY Sports
Hockey superstar Connor McDavid will miss the next week or two with an upper-body injury.
The Edmonton Oilers center sustained the injury on Saturday versus the Winnipeg Jets. In the third period, he was seen grasping his left side during a rush, and did not play the rest of the game. The game would eventually end in a 3-2 overtime loss for the Oilers, with a goal scored by Mark Scheifele of the Jets. The outcome may have been different had McDavid been available in overtime.
“I didn’t walk back in there (locker room) yet, but I’m sure we’ll have something tomorrow,” said Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft. “It didn’t appear to be anything, it appeared to be muscular more than anything to me as I watched during the play. We’ll see.”
Despite McDavid missing the last portion of the game, the loss was not on him. He skated for 20:48 in the game and notched two assists before getting injured. So far this season, he has two goals and six assists, adding up to eight points, in five games. The Oilers are 1-3-1 in that span.
“I think we noticed [McDavid’s absence], that’s probably the understatement of the century,” Winnipeg Jets defenseman Josh Morrissey said. “I don’t know what’s going on there, but 3-on-3 overtime you’re looking for him, so we did notice, yeah.”
Morrissey took down McDavid in a race towards the Jets net in the first period. This resulted in a two-minute holding penalty for Morrissey. Despite this, McDavid still played the next two periods, but it is possible the injury was sustained during that play. However, the good news is that McDavid is only expected to miss one to two weeks.
Heritage Classic
The bad news is that next Sunday is the NHL Heritage Classic game versus the Calgary Flames, and McDavid may not be back in time to partake. That game is scheduled to be held at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton, a football stadium with a capacity of over 56,000.
McDavid won his third Hart Trophy last year, equivalent to MVP. He led the league in goals (64), assists (89), and points (153), playing in all 82 games.
