The Edmonton Oilers may have received a major discount from Connor McDavid in the short term, but it comes with one major caveat — they have to win to keep the best player in the world happy.
McDavid shocked the hockey world just weeks after Kirill Kaprizov signed the most expensive contract in NHL history. Edmonton inked McDavid to a two-year contract extension with a $12.5 million cap hit — nearly $5 million less than Kaprizov’s deal — to keep the three-time MVP in Alberta until the conclusion of the 2027-28 season.
After falling just short of winning a Stanley Cup in back-to-back seasons, losing in the Final to the Florida Panthers both times, McDavid made this move in hopes of helping the Oilers get over the hump. But he left them with a limited window to do so.
McDavid gave up over $10 million in potential earnings over the next two seasons following the conclusion of his current deal in July 2026 to give the Oilers the best chance to put a winning roster around him, but they must return the favor for him.
This means, if the Oilers cannot take advantage of a 2025-26 season where their adversary, the Florida Panthers, are dealing with long-term injuries to Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk, they will have to do all things possible to perfect their roster to win now.
With the NHL’s salary cap set to rise to over $113 million when McDavid’s extension is set to expire, the five-time league scoring leader could command up to $22.8 million if he decides to test the open market, but for him, it has always been about winning. Whether this is an opportunity for him to get the pay day he deserves in two years or re-evaluate his ability to win with Edmonton’s aging core, the Oilers need to strike when the iron is hot and seize this three-year window of opportunity.
There are a select few stars in the NHL who have done the selfless act of taking less to win more, and in most cases, it has worked out.
Sidney Crosby is the prime example of this. He gave the Pittsburgh Penguins a huge discount when he signed a 12-year contract carrying an $8.7 million annual cap hit – as a nod to his jersey number – a move that came at a time when star players were starting to make upwards of $10 million per year. The Penguins did everything they could to build a competitive roster around him and eventually won back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017.
McDavid wants to follow in those footsteps. He wants to win with the team that drafted him No. 1 overall, just as Crosby did three times with Pittsburgh. And as Crosby’s heir apparent as the league’s top face, he wants to get it done soon.
