I had originally wanted this one done months ago with no words, just a video, but apparently, my editor tells me I need a minimum of 300 words in a blog, and at the time I couldn’t think of anything more to say about this moment in Edmonton Oilers history but there’s been plenty of time to reflect on it, so now I think I can swing it.
This is significant for a number of reasons. The team was playing in a shortened season so nobody was expecting it – but if anyone could do it, everyone knew Connor could. He was the only NHLer to get to 100 points last season. It was the fourth time in five seasons that he would reach that mark. He also passed the 500 career points mark, a significant mark that also means he’s over halfway to 1,000 career points – the very mark of legendary scorer status. If he keeps going at 100 points a season, he’ll reach that mark before the age of 30. Wow.
He also finished with one of the best points per game marks in NHL history, at 1.88 – or 1.875 for the trolls who seem to enjoy splitting hairs in the comments section (a pre-emptive strike this time….). It’s worth noting he’s also the only active player on the list for the next 50 spots, when Sidney Crosby is the next active player in the 73rd spot. For the record, in a full 82 game season, that’s 154 points.
Wow.
And what’s really going to boggle your mind is this is all coming from a player who hasn’t even hit his prime producing years yet.
Take a minute and think about that. He’s going to hit this mark by next January. He’s accomplishing more early in his career than some guys do their entire careers. We can all see how good he is, but until you crunch some of the numbers you never truly realize how good he is now and how much better he can become.
For him, the sky’s the limit, and it wouldn’t be surprising in the least to me if he cracks the 2.00 points per game mark – or more – in the coming years.
Now you’re talking about a minimum 164 points in a season. That would be amazing. For those of us who are Oilers fans, we have the pleasure of watching him do his thing game in and game out. All we have to do is enjoy the ride. Now, take a look back at how he got there:
I never get tired of watching that video, hopefully, you don’t either.