Connor McDavid carried a season-opening point streak to 14 games into Sunday’s Oilers vs Rangers matchup at Madison Square Garden, keeping the Edmonton Oilers’ pace hot as they faced the New York Rangers at 6 p.m. ET.
McDavid entered the game leading the NHL with 37 points, including 8 goals and 29 assists, and 35 of those points came in October alone. That left him one point shy of Mario Lemieux’s NHL record for an October, a mark Lemieux set with 38 points in 1988.
The Oilers arrived at 10-2-2 after beating the New York Islanders 4-0 on Saturday, the same night McDavid extended his streak again. That made this game more than a routine road stop; it was the next test of whether the league’s top scorer could keep stretching a run that has already put him in rare company.
The Rangers, meanwhile, came in at 7-6-1 and had lost 3 in a row. They were also feeling the absence of injured goaltender Igor Shesterkin, a gap that matters against any offense but especially against a player rolling through the opening weeks the way McDavid has been.
That is the part that gives this matchup its edge. One team brought momentum, numbers and a star who has barely slowed down since opening night. The other had home ice, but also a losing streak and a missing starter, leaving Sunday’s game at Madison Square Garden to decide whether McDavid’s run would keep climbing or finally meet resistance.
