Wednesday night probably elicited some uncomfortably familiar feelings for Connor McDavid.
For one thing, his Edmonton Oilers failed despite his impressive efforts. McDavid collected two assists on Wednesday, yet the Winnipeg Jets ended up on top by a score of 4-3, so Edmonton didn’t even manage a token “charity point.”
(This gives McDavid 14 goals and 31 assists for 45 points in 37 games, by the way.)
Here’s the prettiest of McDavid’s two helpers, which somehow happened shorthanded, with Leon Draisaitl collecting one of his two points on the night:
Quick question: what’s a more desperate situation, being stuck talking politics with your conspiracy theory-loving relatives or dealing with a bouncing puck on the point with McDavid rapidly approaching?
Anyway, the other familiar moment was quite uncomfortable, too; McDavid may have felt sympathy pains for Mark Scheifele, who suffered a tumble into the boards that reminded a bit of the spill that ended McDavid’s rookie season.
After the game, Jets head coach Paul Maurice stated that “it doesn’t look good” for Scheifele, though he wasn’t able to elaborate. Uh oh.
Paul Maurice says, "initially it doesn't look very good," re Mark Scheifele's upper-body injury. He will be evaluated further and Maurice may have an update tomorrow. #NHLJets pic.twitter.com/kPZEF8Ch6G
— 𝘋𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘯 𝘉𝘢𝘶𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 (@DarrinBauming) December 28, 2017
Scheifele, 24, isn’t that far behind McDavid when it comes to scoring this season. With an assist in his limited 9:41 of ice time tonight, Scheifele has 37 points in as many games in 2017-18.
Just about everything seems dour for Winnipeg, which must be a heck of a feeling after a win:
Blake Wheeler on Scheifele: that's my running mate, part of my livelihood and part of what makes the Jets successful. Irreplaceable. #NHLJets
— Scott Billeck (@ScottBilleck) December 28, 2017
The Jets ended Edmonton’s winning streak at four games, yet it may have come at a cruel cost.
At least Connor Hellebuyck is maintaining his surprising success:
Connor Hellebuyck of the @NHLJets improved to 19-4-5 this season (2.46 GAA, .919 SV%, 2 SO), including a 13-1-1 record on home ice (2.20 GAA, .924 SV%, 2 SO). #NHLStats #EDMvsWPG pic.twitter.com/ROujWmUFAr
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) December 28, 2017
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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.