NHL EDGE stats behind McDavid’s historic start for Oilers

NHL.com's fantasy staff continues to cover the latest trends and storylines in the League through the lens of NHL EDGE puck and player tracker stats. Today, we look at three advanced stats storylines behind Connor McDavid’s historic start for the Edmonton Oilers.

---

Connor McDavid is off to the best start of his illustrious NHL career for the Edmonton Oilers, and his advanced metrics are fueling what could be one of the highest-scoring seasons in history.

The Oilers captain had his third five-point game of the season against the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday, becoming the fourth player in NHL history to 30 points (31) in 10 games or fewer to start a season. The 29-year-old is on pace for 260 points in 84 games, which would be 45 more than Wayne Gretzky’s current single-season record (215 in 1985-86). McDavid also became the second player in history with three five-point games over his first 10 games of a season; Mario Lemieux had three five-point outings over his first eight games in both 1992-93 and 1988-89.

McDavid, who has nine 100-point seasons in his career (third most in history behind Gretzky’s 15, Mario Lemieux’s 10), had his highest point total in 2022-23 (153). McDavid also ranks third in history (minimum 100 games played) in career regular-season points per game (1.56) behind Gretzky (1.92) and Lemieux (1.88). Gretzky, meanwhile, had four 200-point seasons, all with the Oilers, and is the only player in NHL history to accomplish that feat.

McDavid looks to add to his trophy case this season; he is a six-time Art Ross Trophy winner (2017, 2018, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2026), three-time Hart Trophy winner (2017, 2021, 2023), and also won the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy once (2023) and Conn Smythe Trophy (2024; when Oilers lost to Florida Panthers in Stanley Cup Final).

Here are three EDGE stats storylines surrounding McDavid’s torrid start:

1. Skating speed, goals off rush

McDavid leads the entire NHL in both 22-plus mph speed bursts (23) and 20-plus bursts (95) this season; during the NHL’s puck and player tracking era, he leads the League in both of those categories.

NHL EDGE IQ insights: McDavid has scored seven of his eight goals this season off the rush (within five seconds of puck crossing offensive blue line); his only other goal was an empty-net goal. No other NHL player has more than four goals off the rush this season.

McDavid also leads the NHL in 18-20 mph speed bursts (136) and is tied for third in max skating speed (24.01) behind St. Louis Blues defenseman Philip Broberg (24.26) and his Oilers teammate Kasperi Kapanen (24.05).

2. Goals by location

McDavid ranks in the 99th percentile among forwards in mid-range goals (three; tied for seventh in entire NHL) and 96th percentile in high-danger goals (three) this season. As a team, the Oilers are tied for second in high-danger goals (24 in 10 games; Carolina Hurricanes also have 24 but have played 12 games) behind the Toronto Maple Leafs (25 in 12 games).

The Oilers are the only team in the NHL with four players scoring at least seven goals this season: Leon Draisaitl (10; second behind Kirill Kaprizov’s 11), McDavid (eight; tied for fourth), Evan Bouchard and Vasily Podkolzin (seven each). The Hurricanes are the only other team to have multiple players with at least seven goals (two; Sebastian Aho, Logan Stankoven).

McDavid has played mostly on a line with Draisaitl, who’s also averaging more than two points per game (2.10; second in NHL) this season, and Podkolzin under new coach Mike Babcock this season. McDavid and Draisaitl have also been fixtures on the first power play with Bouchard, who’s on pace for his first 100-point season (1.90 points per game; third in entire NHL) and has emerged as the Norris Trophy front-runner.

[EMBED HIGHLIGHT OF MCDAVID’S 5-POINT GAME VS. CAR ON OCT. 22]

3. Playmaking

McDavid has also been off the charts this season as a distributor; he has the most assists (23) of any player in NHL history through the first 10 games of a season (Lemieux had 21 in 1988-89). He also leads the NHL with 18 primary assists, double the next-highest skater (New York Rangers defenseman Adam Fox with nine) and has factored in on 67.4 percent of Edmonton’s goals (31 of 46; most of any player this season). McDavid also extended his season-opening assist streak to 10 games, something that has only been done by three other players in NHL history: Sebastian Aho (2018-19), Ken Linseman (1985-86) and Gretzky (1982-83) each had 12-game season-opening assist streaks.

McDavid has also thrived in terms of offensive zone time percentage (percentage of time that the puck spends in the offensive zone while the player is on the ice and the game clock is running); he ranks in the 95th percentile among forwards in that category at all strengths (47.8) and 98th percentile at even strength (46.5; eighth among forwards). This has translated to his NHL-leading totals in both power-play points (11; all assists) and even-strength points (19) this season.

With the recent injury returns of top-six forwards Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (one goal, one assist in season debut on Thursday) and Zach Hyman, McDavid has a chance to sustain his pace for at least 200 points. McDavid, who’s still seeking his first Stanley Cup title, has the new wrinkles of Babcock (won Stanley Cup with Detroit Red Wings in 2008) and improved team goaltending with the offseason addition of Devon Levi and eventually the Oilers debut of veteran Frederik Andersen (won Cup with Hurricanes last season; currently out with knee injury).