Connor McDavid pressures head coach Kris Knoblauch for changes!

On Tuesday, Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch revealed he plans to have superstar Connor McDavid play in at least one, but possibly both of the final preseason games for Edmonton, Wednesday in Seattle and Friday in Vancouver. That’s because the captain made it clear to his bench boss that he wants to see more action before the start of the 2024-25 season.

“I wanted to play tonight,” McDavid said after Monday’s 3-2 win, per Mark Spector of Sportsnet. “I just wanted to get into a little bit of rhythm. It’s tough to get in a rhythm when you play one, sit out a week, and play another.”

In the victory, McDavid recorded a pair of assists and 21:14 of ice time and led his teammates by example, wanting more shifts even though it is “only’ a preseason contest. The star forward wants to be ready to have a great record at the very beginning of the regular calendar.

“Absolutely,” Corey Perry said of his captain. “I mean, 2-9-1 (last year), it’s not ideal. He’s expressed that. That’s why he wants to start ramping up early.”

When asked about the possibility of getting seriously injured on a play during a preseason game, McDavid didn’t even flinch. While he is aware it is a possibly, as he’s seen Los Angeles Kings’ Drew Doughty and Montreal Canadiens’ Patrik Laine getting severely injured, this is something that can occur at any point in a player’s training. His general manager Stan Bowman agrees with his player’s assessment.

“I think you can overthink that one. Guys can get hurt in practice.

“If anyone gets hurt, then it’s a bad outcome. But if you approach things with that mindset, then you’re always going to be just waiting ’til Game 1 to play.”

McDavid is hoping to see the full roster in for pre-season games and see what this team can do together.

“We haven’t played much with our group. I think you’ll see that the next two games. I’m hoping so, just to get some rhythm, camaraderie. You know that stuff is important,” he explained on Monday.

I have a feeling coach Knoblauch has been informed by his captain on what to do ahead of the season and that he has asked to play in this game. And, when McDavid asks to play, you let him.