Oilers’ Connor McDavid lost at NHL trade deadline originally appeared on The Sporting News Click here to add Sports News as your go-to source.
The Edmonton Oilers didn’t do anything significant at the trade deadline.
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They added Connor Murphy and Jason Dickinson, two defensive players who could at least help cover the Oilers’ weaknesses.
They didn’t find any more firepower to help Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
That’s why The Athletic’s Mark Lazarus wrote after the deadline that one of the biggest losers this week is McDavid himself.
“Connor Murphy and Jason Dickinson are quality defenders who make Edmonton better at five-on-five and in shootouts, but they don’t add much scoring ability,” Lazarus wrote. “The offensive burden still falls on McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.”
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More: The Avalanche was traded away, and a guard born on the same day was traded.
McDavid’s contract was supposed to expire at the end of this season, but he signed a two-year extension at a discount to stay.
The Oilers don’t appear to be taking advantage of that relative discount.
“The Oilers need a scoring winger and have two defense-first players,” Lazarus wrote. “The Oilers needed a true No. 1 goaltender and got them in Tristan Jarry.”
Where do they go from here? Regardless, they can only hope that McDavid’s greatness sustains them.
“A mediocre showing in the Pacific Division means Edmonton still has a chance to get back to the Final Four even if it doesn’t make the Stanley Cup Finals,” Lazarus wrote. “But Bowman hasn’t done enough to make the Oilers feel like a real threat to the Colorado, Dallas, Minnesota, Tampa, Carolina and Buffalo States of the world.”
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McDavid’s time is running out. And this trade deadline, there’s no effort to slow it down.
