EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Oilers captain Connor McDavid has joined an elite club.
McDavid notched his 500th NHL point with a first-period assist in Wednesday night's 3-2 win over the Winnipeg Jets.
The 24-year-old center, from Richmond Hill, Ontario, is the 21st player in NHL history to accomplish the feat before his 25th birthday. He was quick to minimize the feat, which came in just his 369th NHL game.
“It’s a little milestone, I guess. A little thing along the way here, which is nice,” McDavid said. “And onward.”
Fans didn’t have to wait long to see the achievement play out. McDavid slid a quick pass to Jesse Puljujarvi 3:45 into the first period, and the Finnish winger snapped a wrist shot past Winnipeg goalie Connor Hellebuyck to open the scoring. McDavid added another assist on Leon Draisaitl’s power-play goal midway through the second period.
“It’s incredible. He’s done it all his career, he’s going to continue doing it,” Draisaitl said.
The German forward added that he’s even more impressed by how his teammate handles himself off the ice.
“He’s just someone you can learn a lot from. So we’re very lucky, very fortunate to have a guy like that as our leader,” Draisaitl said.
McDavid now has 171 goals and 330 assists in his career and leads the NHL in points this season with nine goals and 22 assists in 18 games.
“I know he doesn’t look at milestones like that very much," Oilers coach Dave Tippett said. "But I think, probably, later on in life, he’ll look back and be very proud of some of those milestones he’s put forth. I know he still wants the team milestone ahead of the individual milestone, so that’s what he’s striving for.”
Picked first overall by the Oilers in 2015, McDavid’s career-best season was in 2018-19 when he had 41 goal and 75 assists for 116 points in 78 games. He was awarded the Art Ross Trophy as the league’s top scorer in 2016-17 and 2017-18, and was also picked by his fellow players as the NHL’s most outstanding player in both seasons. He also took home the Hart Trophy, awarded to annually to the league’s most valuable player, in 2016-17.
McDavid signed an eight-year, $100-million extension with the Oilers in July 2017.
