McDavid expects more from ‘flat’ Oilers against Blue Jackets

EDMONTON -- Connor McDavid wants to see more emotion from the Edmonton Oilers in their game against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Rogers Place on Monday (8:30 p.m. ET; Prime, FDSNOH).

Edmonton is 6-6-4 after 16 games this season, including a 9-1 loss here to the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday. McDavid, its captain, believes the intensity level needs to be raised after its third straight defeat (0-2-1) and sixth in 10 games (4-3-3).

“It’s been flat -- that starts with me as a leader,” McDavid said after practice Sunday. “There has maybe not been enough energy, not enough emotion, and we have to find a way to bring some of that into the game.”

Slow starts have become a trend for the Oilers the past three seasons, but they have been able to overcome them the previous two and made consecutive trips to the Stanley Cup Final, losing to the Florida Panthers each time.

But the loss Saturday was their worst at home since a 10-2 defeat against the Buffalo Sabres on Jan. 27, 2009.

“We talk about in here [that] everybody is trying to bring something,” McDavid said. “Even if it’s not in your nature to be the loudest guy, you have to try a little bit. If it’s not in your nature to play a physical game, you have to try a little bit.

“We all have a hand in bringing just a little bit more -- emotionally, physically and just to our game as a whole. Everybody has a little bit more to give, and I expect everyone to have a good one tomorrow.”

McDavid leads Edmonton with 22 points (five goals, 17 assists) in 16 games but is minus-6 due to his team’s inability to generate at even strength. Leon Draisaitl has 18 points (10 goals, eight assists), and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has 16 points (five goals, 11 assists) but is minus-11, along with defenseman Evan Bouchard, who has 10 points (two goals, eight assists).

The Oilers will be without Nugent-Hopkins on Monday; coach Kris Knoblauch said he'll be out one week because of an undisclosed injury.

“I think there’s a belief in the room that we’ll always figure it out,” McDavid said. “That being said, enough is enough here and we have to find a way to just put a good game together. It starts with a good start and go from there. We have to find a way to put a good game together here.”

Last season, the Oilers started 1-1-2 but were able to right the ship quickly and were 9-4-3 after 16 games. They went on to finish third in the Pacific (48-29-5) and advanced to the Cup Final. In 2023-24, they dropped to a share of last in the NHL standings with a 2-9-1 start, which led to the firing of coach Jay Woodcroft on Nov. 12, 2023. Woodcroft was replaced by Knoblauch.

Helped by a 16-game winning streak from Dec. 21-Jan. 27, the Oilers went on to finish second in the Pacific (49-27-6) and went all the way to the Cup Final.

“There’s lots of belief in the room that we’ll figure it out,” McDavid said. “We’ve kind of let things get to this point, I guess, and I think [Saturday] night was the accumulation of a lot of different things. Last night is a great warning to the group of what happens when you’re not ready to roll in this league; it’s humbling and we stand better for it. We have to move on tomorrow.”

McDavid admitted it can be difficult to generate the same level of emotion two months into the regular season than during the playoffs. But if Edmonton is going to challenge for the Stanley Cup again, it unquestionably needs to play with more urgency.

“It’s not an issue as we move on through the season,” McDavid said. “Early on it’s been an issue to bring some of the emotion and bring some of that energy to the game -- that’s skating and being a little bit more physical.

“You don’t need to run anyone through the end wall or drop the gloves with anybody, but just bring some of that emotion, that chatter, that energy. Bring your legs, skate, work, all that stuff goes into it. We haven’t done enough of that.”