Connor McDavid pens emotional open letter to fans on Cup Final loss and upcoming Olympics
Connor McDavid has a reputation for being one of the more quiet and reserved NHL stars, but he’s speaking up now in a big way with an open letter to all fans.
McDavid has been through a lot the last few years, between his wedding, two Cup Final losses, the chance to play for Canada at the 4 Nations Faceoff. Now heading into another massive competition in the Olympics, McDavid took a step back to reflect on what it’s all meant, and what he’s doing moving forward.
Connor McDavid pens emotional open letter to all Oilers fans ahead of Olympics
Moments ago, the NHL’s Players’ Tribune published the piece from Connor McDavid himself. It’s well worth the time for any fan to read the reflections of hockey’s best player, especially with his open and honest feelings on the pain of losing the last two Cups. But now, he’s got his sights set on a Gold Medal.
McDavid spoke about the jarring shift of reality when he assumed the Captaincy of the Edmonton Oilers at just 19 years old. It was just a handful of years prior that he was a normal kid: going to school, playing in the park, playing hockey at every chance. Then he was thrust into the position of leading veteran pro players.
I’ve gotten older, and we've had some deep playoff runs, wearing the C means something entirely different now. It’s not enough to put up points or represent the community well. All I want to do is win. It’s all we think about in our room. It’s all we talk about in the offseason. It’s why I get up every morning. It’s why I’ve stayed in Edmonton for more than a decade.
I’m 11 years into my career. Of course I think about my legacy. I want to be remembered as a winner. But not just anywhere. Here. To be in this city during a Cup run, to feel that buzz … it just wouldn’t be the same somewhere else.
- Connor McDavid
I’m 11 years into my career. Of course I think about my legacy. I want to be remembered as a winner. But not just anywhere. Here. To be in this city during a Cup run, to feel that buzz … it just wouldn’t be the same somewhere else.
- Connor McDavid
Oilers fans have seen how McDavid has evolved into a phenomenal leader in the locker room, driven by an unquenchable thirst for winning. To him, that’s what it’s all about - and he wants it to happen in Edmonton.
McDavid specifically noted that it’s been painful not winning a title in his pro career, until the 4 Nations. Now with a chance for a true Gold Medal at a rare NHL Olympics, he’s obsessed with winning it.
If I can be real here for a second, I just want to win something again.
There’s this moment I’ll never forget. Before the OT started, we were sitting around the dressing room, everyone wanted to just get back out there and drop the puck. And I remember looking around and there was Sid, Marchy, Doughty. And I really just remember how calm they were.
Maybe it was the red Canada jerseys. But you just looked at those guys and remembered, “Man, I grew up a fan of you. I watched you on Saturday nights. This is such an honor.”
In that moment, with everything on the line, I think we all remembered what it was to be a hockey fan. To be a Team Canada fan. To be Canadian.
And then we went out and won it.
- Connor McDavid
There’s this moment I’ll never forget. Before the OT started, we were sitting around the dressing room, everyone wanted to just get back out there and drop the puck. And I remember looking around and there was Sid, Marchy, Doughty. And I really just remember how calm they were.
Maybe it was the red Canada jerseys. But you just looked at those guys and remembered, “Man, I grew up a fan of you. I watched you on Saturday nights. This is such an honor.”
In that moment, with everything on the line, I think we all remembered what it was to be a hockey fan. To be a Team Canada fan. To be Canadian.
And then we went out and won it.
- Connor McDavid
McDavid is wrestling with these feelings of the constant grind of the NHL season without ever having the payoff of a win, and only the scars of a loss. He’s disappointed on how this year is turning out, but knows the Oilers are doing everything possible to get back there and win the Cup.
When we lose a game, whether it’s game one of 82 or game 3 of a playoff series, it’s a big deal here. Like I said, I welcome that pressure. But as a player, as a leader, I can’t get too high or too low. And so how do you have fun in an environment like that?
I don’t have that answer right now. Sometimes the regular season feels like a grind. I think you’ve seen it in our play this year, in my play. I’m not always proud of that, but I want to be honest here. Because what I can also say is that our room is working really hard. We’re trying to win and have fun and be the team we know we can be.
- Connor McDavid
I don’t have that answer right now. Sometimes the regular season feels like a grind. I think you’ve seen it in our play this year, in my play. I’m not always proud of that, but I want to be honest here. Because what I can also say is that our room is working really hard. We’re trying to win and have fun and be the team we know we can be.
- Connor McDavid
But even through all the pain of losing, he just wants to be on the ice. He wants to win the Cup in Edmonton. He wants to win a Gold Medal for Canada - and he can’t rest until it happens.
If anything, the Olympics is bringing back the childlike joy in hockey for Connor McDavid.
I don’t need a break, or a fresh start. I just want to be in Edmonton, playing hockey. I want to get back there again, whatever it takes. If that sounds like a robot, then I guess I’m a robot. But I see it differently. It doesn’t feel like work to me. It’s just the game that I love.
You hear that first crunch, and you just love it. I still love it, even when it sucks.
I think best-on-best, country-against-country, that’s where hockey becomes something else. It reminds us of the shovels and the snow, the rollerblades and the roadrash.
I can’t wait to get in that room. I can’t wait to play more hockey.
You hear that first crunch, and you just love it. I still love it, even when it sucks.
I think best-on-best, country-against-country, that’s where hockey becomes something else. It reminds us of the shovels and the snow, the rollerblades and the roadrash.
I can’t wait to get in that room. I can’t wait to play more hockey.
It’s incredible to hear these thoughts from hockey’s best player, as a Canadian, and as Oilers fans. He understands the task at hand of representing our country and our city, and is ready to take on the task - with a bit more joy for the hell of it.
Also read on Edmonton Hockey Daily :
Calvin Pickard reportedly will not report to AHL after waivers, goalie issue raised
Calvin Pickard reportedly will not report to AHL after waivers, goalie issue raised
| POLL | ||
2 HOURS AGO|99 ANSWERS Connor McDavid pens emotional open letter to fans on Cup Final loss and upcoming Olympics Do you think McDavid will win a cup in Edmonton? | ||