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The waiting game and uncertainty continue for the NHL’s best player.
Oilers center Connor McDavid, a three-time league Most Valuable Player, said Thursday he still has not made a decision on his future contract status. Since July 1, he’s been eligible to sign an extension with Edmonton. Without such a deal in the coming weeks, McDavid will play the final season of his eight-year, $100 million contract, and could become perhaps the biggest free agent in NHL history.
“I have every intention to win in Edmonton. That’s my only focus, maybe next to winning the gold with Canada. … We’re going through it slowly,” McDavid said of his contract deliberations. “I’d say all options are on the table, really.”
McDavid’s remarks were the first substantive ones on his professional future since the Oilers lost for the second straight year in the Stanley Cup Final to the Panthers. Appearing Wednesday in Calgary for Team Canada’s orientation camp ahead of the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy, media scrutiny almost immediately pivoted to his future with the Oilers.
“Not even a softball Olympic question before we get started?” McDavid said.
The Oilers will open training camp Sept. 17 and the regular season Oct. 8.
“I want the group to be as focused and dialed in and ready to roll from Day 1 as much as possible, and we don’t need any distractions,” McDavid said.
The Oilers remain confident they’ll complete an agreement to retain McDavid.
“It’s not going to be a long negotiation,” Jeff Jackson, Oilers CEO and president of hockey and McDavid’s former agent, told Daily Faceoff earlier this week. “I think when Connor is ready, we’ll have the conversation, and we’ll get a deal done.”
Cap Boosts
McDavid remains in line for a substantial pay bump, wherever he plays, due to sharply increased salary caps coming to the league.
Fueled heavily by recent boosts in attendance, media rights, and overall revenue, the NHL’s salary cap will rise from $88 million per team last season to $95.5 million in the upcoming one, and then a projected $104 million in 2026–27 and $113.5 million in 2027–28.
McDavid, like any other player, can sign for as much as 20% of a team’s salary cap, putting his potential future salary at more than $20 million in future years, a sharp jump from his current $12.5 million annual average.
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