If You're Not Rooting For Connor McDavid To Win The Cup This Year, You Hate Hockey
Icon Sportswire. Getty Images.The second that final buzzer went off and the Florida Panthers won the Cup last year, you knew it was only a matter of time before McDavid would get himself back there. The gloves were tossed in the air and hadn't even hit the ice yet, and McDavid was already in battle mode getting ready for 2025. He didn't even take a quick moment to get back on the ice to accept the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs, because he knew he'd be back there to finish the job.
And now here we are 340 days later. Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers are back in the Cup Final to take on an all too familiar opponent.
Wayne Gretzky's first trip to the Stanley Cup Final was in 1983 when the Edmonton Oilers were swept by the New York Islanders. Gretzky and the Oilers turned around and ended up beating the Islanders in the 1984 Cup Final to give 99 his first ring.
Sidney Crosby's first trip to the Stanley Cup Final was in 2008 when the Pittsburgh Penguins lost to the Detroit Redwings. Crosby and the Penguins turned around and ended up beating the Red Wings in the 2009 Cup Final to give 87 his first ring.
Both of those guys will always be remembered as two of the greatest to ever play the game. It doesn't matter if you're talking today, or in 30-40 years from now. You'll be able to talk about Gretzky and Crosby as all-time greats, and they'll have the Stanley Cups to back it up in that argument. Obviously "ring culture" has ruined how we talk about the legacy of athletes, but it is what it is. Any time you're talking about the greats, the conversation always comes back to rings.
Which is why everybody on planet Earth--besides folks who live in Florida, I guess--should be rooting for Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers to win the Cup this year.
Connor McDavid is the best player in the world. There's not even a question about it. He's been the best player on the planet for years at this point. He has all the individual awards, he even has a Conn Smythe. We all know that he's one of the greatest to ever lace up a pair of skates. But one day he'll retire, 20-30 years will pass by, you'll be arguing with some little shithead about the best hockey players ever, and he'll ask you how many rings McDavid has. If the answer is zero, he'll immediately discredit McDavid's greatness.
All I'm saying is that we can't allow McDavid's greatness to one day get discredited, and simply be remembered as the greatest to never win the Cup. It can't happen.
I know we've had a ton of fun over the last 32 years as Canada has been in a Cup drought. I know it's going to hurt to see a Canadian team finally get the job done for the first time since the 1993 Montreal Canadiens. I get wanting to root for America. But if you love the sport of hockey, and you care about it's history? You know how important it is for Connor McDavid to win a Cup. You have to be an Oilers fan this time around.
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RIGHT FUCKING NOW