PITTSBURGH (AP) — Five strides. That's all it took for Connor McDavid to race by two Pittsburgh Penguins and deliver a magnificent goal in what is becoming another masterpiece of a season for the Edmonton star.
A fourth scoring title is in the offing for McDavid. Perhaps a deep playoff run for the surging Oilers too. The postseason is far murkier for the player McDavid replaced as the face of the NHL.
Sidney Crosby and the Penguins are reeling, the latest setback a 5-1 loss to McDavid and Edmonton on Tuesday that offered a portrait of two teams heading in opposite directions.
McDavid overwhelmed Pittsburgh with his speed and the kind of dazzling playmaking that used to be almost exclusively Crosby's domain. The 22nd four-point night of McDavid's career ended with a pretty shot from a tight angle 9:13 into the third period.
With Edmonton on the power play, McDavid took a pass from Leon Draisaitl high in the slot, darted past Evan Rodrigues, then slipped by 6-foot-3 Jeff Carter before rifling a shot while gliding on one skate. His 44th goal of the season gave the Oilers a three-goal lead and left the 25-year-old smiling as he skated toward the giddy Edmonton bench.
“Best player in the world, right?” Oilers forward Zach Hyman said. “So that’s what you expect and that’s what you get."
Evander Kane scored his sixth goal in his last four games for Edmonton. Hyman, Evan Bouchard and Zack Kassian also scored as the Oilers improved to 17-4-2 in their last 23 games. Mike Smith stopped 33 shots to win his ninth straight start.
The victory assured Edmonton of home-ice advantage in the first round when the chase for the Stanley Cup begins in earnest next week. Not bad for a team that was floundering around the All-Star break. Not so
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