Nothing Else Matters to Connor McDavid Except Winning
As the old saying goes, you have to learn to lose before you can win. That is what Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers did last year in the 2024 Stanley Cup Final against the Florida Panthers, losing in Game 7.
McDavid saw the Panthers hoist the Stanley Cup above their heads after the confetti and streamers came down from the rafters. He was the last person off the ice, taking in that moment and realizing he never wanted to feel that pain again.
Losing is the ultimate motivating factor. And when new Oilers general manager Stan Bowman met with Connor McDavid in the summer, the first thing they talked about was winning the Stanley Cup.
“Well the first time I talked to Connor, I went to see him the summer after I started and all he talked about was I just want to win the Stanley Cup. That was it,” Stan Bowman said on Media Day. “We didn’t talk about anything else. This is a singular focus. He’s incredibly motivated and driven to win.”
Like Wayne Gretzky before him in Edmonton, he had to lose to the New York Islanders in 1983 before winning the Stanley Cup in 1984. Gretzky walked by the Islanders dressing room and saw what it took. There was no celebration among the players as they dealt with the sacrifices it took to win, as they were quiet and banged up.
That is the difference between winning and losing the Stanley Cup. It is hard to win the Stanley Cup. It is even harder to get back there again. However, last year, going through that handshake line and knowing how close his team was to completing a 3-0 comeback in the Stanley Cup Final is a significant motivating factor for McDavid and the Oilers as they head into the 2025 Stanley Cup Final.
It's a shot at redemption as the Edmonton Oilers will face the Florida Panthers once again. It is a rematch from a year ago, and who would have thought that Matthew Tkachuk would have been right when he told McDavid in the handshake line that we will see you again next year?
Not to mention Zach Hyman’s speech to the Oilers following Game 7, in which he said they would be back in this spot a year later. You can tell that not only did McDavid take that to heart, but the rest of his teammates did too.
It has become personal for Connor McDavid. He has heard all the talk about being the best player in the world. And he is that with the awards to back it up, including the Conn Smythe Trophy last year in a losing effort. However, losing became personal not only to him but also to the Oilers.
They have that San Antonio Spurs mentality. Remember, San Antonio lost to the Miami Heat in the 2013 NBA Finals, and then the following year, they steamrolled everyone and won the NBA Championship in 2014 against the same team. The Spurs showed it was their trophy in 2013, had it not been for some poor coaching decisions, and proved they were the best.
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The Edmonton Oilers have that same feel as well. Connor McDavid is leading the way with a mentality similar to that of Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, which is that the job is not yet finished. McDavid is never satisfied with the result, as he is handling his emotions better.
“Right now, he's on a mission,” Bowman continued on media day. “I think, as much as you get excited when you win, I think I've noticed it from even the first round, the second round, even in Dallas, he's still very focused on we need four more wins.”
Despite being back in the Stanley Cup Final for the second year in a row, he views it as just another series. Just like after defeating the Dallas Stars in the Western Conference Final, it was on to the next one.
“It’s been less emotional and less of a roller coaster,” McDavid said on Media Day ahead of the Stanley Cup Final. “Just the whole thing feels more normal, which is a good thing.”
That is the mindset McDavid has this season with the Oilers. It's all business for him, as he is locked in and focused on winning the Stanley Cup this time around. While the Panthers can certainly repeat, it is hard to imagine Connor McDavid losing in the Stanley Cup Final two years in a row with the mindset he is carrying throughout the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Unlike last season, when McDavid won the Conn Smythe Trophy in his team's loss in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final, this season, McDavid is sacrificing points as he showcases his defensive game. While he still leads the playoffs in points, he is showcasing another side of his game to help him win.
He is taking the criticism of his team's inability to play defence to heart. As Michael Jordan said, "It became personal to me."
As previously mentioned, he had heard it all about how he couldn’t score goals, and then he went on to score 60 goals. Oh, he can’t play defense, and now he is showing he can play a 200-foot game defensively, including penalty kill minutes. McDavid is showing the world he is willing to do anything to win.
Don't believe one minute players don't hear or read what is said in the media. Jordan did it all the time. McDavid is doing the same thing, and he is letting the press know about it, especially after wins. Just go back to Game 2 when he opened his post-game availability.
"Yes, we can play defense,” McDavid said laughing as told the media following the Game 2 victory.
Even before that, McDavid was letting everyone know he was getting tired of answering questions about the Oilers and whether they could play defence.
“I’m how many times are we going to answer this question, really like honestly? It’s frustrating that we keep talking about this. We can defend. We can,” McDavid told reporters after the Oilers advanced to the Western Conference for the third time in four years as they defeated the Vegas Golden Knights 1-0 in Game 5 in overtime.
He continues to demonstrate that everything written and said has become personal to him. He is on a mission to win and prove that even the best players can play two-way hockey. It's all business, all the time, for the Edmonton Oilers captain as they return to the Stanley Cup Final and hope to take home the ultimate prize.
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