Connor McDavid has his sights set on joining Edmonton at training camp, but the Oilers centerman isn't putting a strict timetable on his rehab.
McDavid, 22, suffered a serious leg injury in April and spoke briefly about his recovery process Monday, at the annual BioSteel camp.
#oilers mcdavid has no timetable for his return from rehab. "Just aiming for training camp."
— Mike Zeisberger (@Zeisberger) August 26, 2019
The Edmonton Journal summarized his comments:
"(I'm) progressing well, making progress every day… no (setbacks) … it’s been different, just focusing on that; it’s taken a lot of time, but it’s been good. … I got back on the ice a couple of months ago … we’re just working hard to get to camp and we’ll focus on that … obviously (BioSteel) is a camp that I enjoy, but I already worked out this morning and skated up at Gary (Roberts’ Athletic Training Program), I’m just doing my own thing, I just need to focus on that right now. … I’m just focusing on my rehab and the injury itself; it’s tough to focus on anything else … It’s coming back together. Ultimately I don’t want to come back too early and make sure that it’s fully healed and you’re not going to get hurt again. But I’m not too worried about that.”
McDavid suffered the injury in the team's final regular-season game against the Flames.
The Edmonton captain was seen on camera saying, what looked like, "it's broken," after he crashed full speed into the goal post during the second period of the contest. McDavid had to be helped off the ice by teammates.
It was later reported McDavid injured his posterior cruciate ligament (PCL).
Oilers general manager Ken Holland said in mid-June no surgery would be required, and the team expects McDavid will be ready for training camp in September.
McDavid, the No. 1 pick in the 2015 NHL Draft, has 372 points (128 goals, 244 assists) in 287 games.
He finished the 2019 season second in the NHL with 116 points (41 goals, 75 assists).
McDavid, a league MVP candidate, was expected to play for Canada at the 2019 IIHF World Championships next month, but he will continue to recover instead.