Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid played his 500th NHL match on Monday night, and in doing so became the leader among active players in points and assists through their first 500 games.
A whopping 724 points have been scored by the 2015 number one draft pick in 500 games, with 472 assists being recorded. The expectation surrounding McDavid was high when he entered the league, but the Oilers star has managed to perform even greater than anyone anticipated.
McDavid surpassed Sidney Crosby as the former active leader, with the current Pittsburgh Penguins star racking up 706 points in his first 500 games. McDavid's tally ranks him sixth on the all-time list for points scored in 500 opening NHL appearances, with no prizes for guessing who tops the list - Wayne Gretzky.
The speed machine that is McDavid has dominated the NHL ever since being drafted by the Oilers, with many fans believing he is the best player in the league. And in true McDavid fashion, he scored and assisted in trademark style on his special night against the Washington Capitals.
Unfortunately it wasn't enough to inspire victory, as veteran Alexander Ovechkin also picked up two points as his team won 5-4. Ovechkin has been breaking his own records recently, as the 37-year-old broke Gordie Howe's record for most NHL goals scored for one team.
At this rate, if McDavid sticks with the Oilers then it's a record he could break one day, with the Canadian star already scoring 252 goals by the age of 25. Ovechkin is way out in front with 788 though, as he hones in on Gretsky's all-time tally.
It feels like McDavid only entered the league as a young, bright generational talent a few years ago, and even the Oilers star was surprised at how quickly 500 games has gone by. "Really fast. Yeah," McDavid said about reaching the milestone.
"It goes quick. Getting a chance to live out my dream and playing in the NHL, to have done it for 500 games now, means a lot to me. I know there’s not a lot of guys who get to that number, so it’s special to me."
And McDavid continues to improve too, currently scoring an average of 2.08 points per game as his incredible numbers begin to rise even more. But it comes naturally to McDavid, who couldn't even put his finger on what he had improved on.
"Maybe just being a little more aggressive? Taking pucks to the net a little bit more, maybe? I don’t know," McDavid said when asked about his rising numbers in the stats department. "I don’t know what it is. I think it just shows that, sometimes, analytics are a moot point. Sometimes it’s just going in for you."
The goals, the assists, and the performances are all there for McDavid, as they always have been. The one thing that continues to escape him is Stanley Cup glory, but with the Oilers straddling at 7-6, they'll need to step it up in order to be a force should they make the play-offs.
