Well-Connected ex-NYR Says Connor McDavid Will Ditch Oilers for Rangers

Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid

You can tell from his recent comments. Connor McDavid is getting antsy. And Edmonton Oilers fans are getting anxious. With only a two-year extension signed, which begins next season, McDavid could force his way out of Edmonton if things aren't going to his satisfaction, as soon as the summer of 2027.

At that point, he'd have one year left on his contract in Edmonton, and either he or the Oilers could initiate the "get something in return before he becomes a UFA" discussions.

Given all of that, well-connected former New York Ranger Sean Avery insists that McDavid will soon be on his way to Broadway.

Avery said on The Adam Friedland Show (h/t nhl trade talk), "He’s so good... But he’s going to have to be, because he’s going to sign with the Rangers in two years."

Insider Greg Wyshynski repeated that story this week to Jeff Marek on The Sheet, while confirming Avery's connections, and the assurance with which he spoke:

Sean Avery, in that interview, said with some level of confidence and authority that I didn’t anticipate hearing, that Connor McDavid would be a Ranger when his contract is up. Now, I think there has been speculation to that end, but I just found it to be interesting that Avery was so emphatic about it. I was sort of startled by how matter-of-fact it was, by a guy who still has some tentacles into the MSG universe.

Of course, the Rangers are just embarking on a full rebuild, and unless they quickly put themselves back into serious contention within the next year, it's highly unlikely that McDavid—who wants to win a Cup more than anything—would have any interest at all in joining the Blueshirts.

Additionally, to make for more chatter, Wyshynski and Marek went on to speculate that the Montreal Canadiens would be a team that might have the best return to offer Edmonton. But of course, in the situation described above, where McDavid decides it's time to move, it would be up to him where he goes, and the Oilers would just have to take what they could get.

Last weekend, McDavid talked openly (passively-aggressively, some would say) about how "well-coached" the Tampa Bay Lightning are. It was a thinly veiled shot at Kris Knoblauch and the Oilers staff. If that's really how he feels, and the team flames out early in the playoffs, and doesn't miraculously recover to win a Stanley Cup next season, all of this Rangers talk—and/or many other potential McDavid destinations—will start up in earnest.