Wayne Gretzky settles the Connor McDavid exit talk
His future is uncertain
Connor McDavid
Connor McDavid is a Canadian ice hockey centre who has captained the Edmonton Oilers since 2016, having been drafted first overall by the club in 2015. McDavid was born in Richmond Hill, Ontario, on 13 January 1997 and has won the Hart Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player three times, in 2017, 2021 and 2023. McDavid also took the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2024, in a spring when Edmonton lost the Stanley Cup Final.
| Position | Centre, shoots left |
|---|---|
| Born | 13 January 1997, Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada |
| Drafted | First overall by the Edmonton Oilers, 2015 NHL Draft |
| NHL teams | Edmonton Oilers |
| Milestones | Named Oilers captain in October 2016, the youngest captain in NHL history at the time; passed 1,000 career points in November 2024 and 1,100 in November 2025 |
| Honours | 3 Hart Trophies (2017, 2021, 2023), 6 Art Ross Trophies, 5 Ted Lindsay Awards, Rocket Richard Trophy in 2023, Conn Smythe Trophy in 2024 |
| Known for | Puck control at top speed, and the overtime winner for Canada in the 4 Nations Face-Off final in February 2025 |
Why does Connor McDavid wear 97?
McDavid wears his birth year. He was born on 13 January 1997, and the 97 on his back follows the same logic Sidney Crosby applied with 87, taking the last two digits of the year rather than honouring another player. McDavid carried the number through minor hockey and his junior seasons with the Erie Otters, who raised it to the rafters in a ceremony in January 2025, and he has worn it in Edmonton since arriving in 2015. The two digits now work as shorthand for him in the way 99 and 87 do for the players he grew up watching.
Why Connor McDavid is so fast on skates
McDavid was skating before he started school and played organised hockey from his preschool years, and he was already beating boys three years his senior in minor hockey. What sets him apart is less raw straight-line speed than puck control at full stride, which lets him cross the offensive blue line at a pace defenders struggle to mirror while still making plays. Our breakdown of McDavid's points against every NHL team shows how steadily that turns into production. He led the league in scoring six times through the 2025-26 season.
Connor McDavid's contract history with the Oilers
McDavid signed a two-year extension worth 25 million dollars in October 2025, on the eve of the season, keeping the same 12.5 million dollar cap hit he had carried since 2019 instead of taking a raise. Reporting at the time tied the short term and the flat salary to one aim: leaving Edmonton enough room to build a roster that could win a first Stanley Cup. McDavid had reached the Final in 2024 and 2025, losing both to Florida, and was named playoff MVP in the first of them. The signing also cooled the recurring talk about McDavid leaving Edmonton.
Why did Connor McDavid start playing hockey?
McDavid grew up in Richmond Hill, Ontario, north of Toronto, where he learned to skate as a preschooler and joined his first organised team soon after. He was quickly matched against boys three years older, which set the pattern for a route through minor hockey that led to the Erie Otters of the OHL, the club that later retired his number, and then straight to Edmonton for the 2015-16 season. Away from the rink, McDavid married the designer Lauren Kyle in Ontario in July 2024, and Kyle's public message after McDavid's Ted Lindsay Award win is one of the few glimpses the couple has offered.
