BLOG: Oilers react to McDavid's Goal of the Year

EDMONTON, AB - "What more can you say?" wondered Oilers play-by-play voice Jack Michaels.
Connor McDavid's dazzling goal in the third period of Friday's 6-5 victory over the New York Rangers drew plenty of praise from his Oilers teammates and coaches, with reaction to the Captain's Goal of the Year candidate around the NHL reverberating well into the next week.
Take another look at his incredible 1-on-4 effort and read the reaction from McDavid, his teammates and bench boss below:

Connor McDavid:

"I wasn't happy I didn't keep the puck in the zone. I thought we were building something there and I kind of just lost the handle. I kind of just lost the handle on the puck all night, but I thought I'd just try to pick my way through there. I wasn't going overly fast, and the guys did a good job hustling back to get onside. I kind of just tried to pick my way through, find a way through, and thankfully I did."
"I'm paid to score big goals, and I'm paid to do that type of stuff. I'm just doing my job. Probably not the best idea to take four guys on every night, but I thought the situation was kind of weird. Everyone was kind of coming up, I was coming down the pipe, and I just tried to make a play."
"It was a nice goal. I've scored some nice ones in my career, and that's up there with a few of them. I thought just the timing of it with the crowd, the night and all that, it definitely felt a bit bigger than just a game in November. It was a nice goal, but I've scored some nice ones."
"I think any time you score a nice goal, there's always a little bit of surprise, especially going through a couple of guys like that. Again, just the moment, the fans were into it all night, especially in the third period when we were building something back there. It just kind of came out there."

Darnell Nurse:

"Time after time, this guy steps up in situations like that and makes a huge play. Obviously, going 1-on-4, I've never seen it before, but it was a huge goal. He'll be very 'down play' a little bit, but that was one of the nicest goals I've ever seen - probably the nicest one I've ever seen."

Zach Hyman:

"I don't know if you were watching the bench, but the bench went crazy. The time in the game to score a goal like that, it's pretty special, obviously. Only he can make a play like that, so it's just Connor being Connor."
"I think it's the best goal I've ever seen. Number one."

Jesse Puljujarvi:

"First, he had good speed, and then I was thinking, 'What is he going to do?' Then he just went there and (made) a couple of nice moves and got a nice goal. I was just laughing."
"Maybe a little bit (more excited), but it was different. It was funny to watch that and what he did. That was an unreal goal."

Tyson Barrie:

"That was just an outlandish goal. It was almost like he was playing shinny hockey. I've probably watched it two dozen times online since then. Just a special player in a big moment doing what he does. You can't be surprised by that anymore. We all looked shocked on the ice but you just come to expect it out of him. I don't know if it gets any nicer than that. I don't know what else you could do. Pretty crazy."

Zack Kassian:

"It was amazing. That's the nicest goal I've ever seen him score. The one comparable that I told him after the game was the one when he came back from his collarbone against Columbus. He danced that guy pretty good (goaltender Joonas Korpisalo). I think that goal Friday night trumps that one. It was pretty unique just the way he was standing still essentially at the blueline and then just exploded. Then the rest speaks for itself. It was pretty impressive."

Head Coach Dave Tippett:

"I don't know, I've seen him score some pretty nice ones. It's got to be thrown right into that group. It's the goal, but it's the meaning of the goal - where it is during the game. That was a huge goal for us to tie up the game late, so that's the thing I like about it. It was done at a time when it was really needed. It wasn't a useless goal, up 8-2 and he scores a beautiful goal. It's a goal that really matters."
"I compared it to the one I think was in the first game two years ago when he came back and scored a late goal like that. All of the sudden, out of nothing, he ends up alone on the goalie and scores the winning goal. The one the other night, the situation it was in, and the impact the goal had on the game, was what made it a great goal.