It appears the Oilers avoided disaster.
The left leg injury captain Connor McDavid suffered in Edmonton's season finale Saturday against the Flames is not as bad as initially feared, Sportsnet's John Shannon reported. However, McDavid will not suit up for Team Canada at the 2019 IIHF world championships.
“We can’t go too far in it. We’re still evaluating it, but it’s not as serious as we thought,” Oilers CEO Bob Nicholson said Monday. “But it’s Connor, it’s an injury, it’s serious for our organization.”
McDavid underwent X-rays moments after suffering the injury, which came back negative. The 22-year-old told reporters Sunday he felt his left leg was broken after the initial impact.
“We still don’t know too much. Things look fairly positive right now but we haven’t had a picture in there so we’ll see,” McDavid said. “To be completely honest with you, I thought my leg was in two pieces when I was sitting on the ice."
It was an unceremonious end to an otherwise fantastic season for McDavid. The Richmond Hill, Ont., native tallied 116 points (75 assists, 41 goals) in 78 games, his third consecutive 100-plus point season, putting himself at the forefront of Hart Trophy discussion, which honors the league's most valuable player.
The injury is a blow to Team Canada, which McDavid captained at the 2018 IIHF world championships. McDavid tallied 17 points (12 assists, five goals) as Canada finished fourth in the tournament. McDavid also suited up for his home country in 2016.
The 2019 world championships begin May 10 in Bratislava and Kosice, Slovakia.