Think about being a beer league hockey participant and seeing Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, the NHL’s best dynamic duo, present up as ringers on your sport that night time.
Now think about outscoring them.
The Edmonton Oilers superstars suited up for a Wednesday night time pickup sport on the Magna Centre in Newmarket, Ontario, round the place McDavid grew up enjoying hockey. McDavid and Draisaitl hit the ice carrying Oilers follow jerseys to the delight of followers.
But when these followers had been anticipating the previous NHL MVPs to crush the locals like they had been enjoying a online game set to “straightforward” mode, that wasn’t the case. The truth is, in line with reviews, neither McDavid nor Draisaitl had a aim within the sport.
Granted, they had been enjoying at offseason speeds and trying to arrange others. McDavid wasn’t precisely dipping into his bag of tips when he received breakaway probabilities towards the opposing goaltender. Not that the goaltender in all probability minded, having been gifted the story of stopping Connor McDavid on a number of breakaways.
In line with reviews, McDavid and Draisaitl discovered themselves down 4-0 after the tip of the primary interval. They finally misplaced the sport 6-2.
On-ice officers mentioned they got a heads-up that McDavid and Draisaitl had been going to play that night time, in line with TSN. They had been nonetheless a little bit “starstruck” however admitted the refs labored more durable for the event “despite the fact that it is a summer season league sport in July.”
This is not the primary time McDavid has dropped in to play summer season hockey. He brought about a stir again in 2023 when he suited up for a championship last sport towards a crew that had Los Angeles Kings star Quinton Byfield as a ringer.
“That is a league I performed in with my buddies for over ten years now. We joined that league again after I performed junior hockey. I used to be a little bit bit shocked to see it get blown up,” he advised ESPN. “I have been enjoying in these video games for over a decade now. So it is fairly humorous that it simply form of got here up.”
McDavid and Draisaitl will run it again with the Oilers subsequent season as they search a 3rd straight journey to the Stanley Cup Ultimate and their first championship collectively. However earlier than that, Edmonton followers — and followers across the NHL — are ready to listen to McDavid’s determination on a brand new contract with the Oilers, as he is scheduled to turn into an unrestricted free agent subsequent summer season.