Connor McDavid added another trophy to the shelf Wednesday night, taking home Best NHL Player at the ESPY Awards for the fourth time in his career.
The Edmonton Oilers captain earned the honour after a season that saw him finish with 48 goals and 132 points. He was up against a strong group of finalists that included Hart Trophy winner Nikita Kucherov, Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon, and rising star Macklin Celebrini.
The win keeps an Edmonton streak alive, too. An Oiler has now claimed the award in five straight years, with Leon Draisaitl getting the nod in 2025.
McDavid’s latest ESPY puts him in rare company. Since the awards began in 1993, only Sidney Crosby has won Best NHL Player more often, with the Pittsburgh Penguins star holding the record at eight victories.
The list of past winners is a decorated one. It includes Mario Lemieux, Mark Messier, Eric Lindros, Joe Sakic, Dominik Hasek, Chris Pronger, Jarome Iginla, Jean-Sebastien Giguere, Jaromir Jagr, Tim Thomas, Jonathan Quick, Jonathan Toews, Alex Ovechkin and Patrick Kane.
The ESPYs, short for Excellence in Sports Performance Yearly Awards, are built around cross-sport competition and are broadcast on network television in the United States. The show hands out prizes such as Best Male Athlete and Best Female Athlete, and also features honors like the Arthur Ashe Courage Award and the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance.
McDavid also picked up the Ted Lindsay Award for best player as voted by his peers in 2025-26. He finished second in Hart Trophy voting, with the Professional Hockey Writers Association naming him runner-up for MVP.
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Levi is the name that stands out most in that mix, because the upside is obvious and the fit feels like it could matter over time. With Jarry and Andersen in the room, the Oilers are also giving themselves some insulation as they try to bring Levi along, but the real question is whether this swing finally gives them the stability they have been chasing. [Read more 🡒]
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There is also a quieter contract decision taking shape elsewhere on the roster, with Matt Savoies next deal potentially influenced by the recent Cole Perfetti extension. Edmonton may prefer to think long term rather than settle for a bridge arrangement, especially if the market continues to reward young talent in that tier. It is the sort of front-office call that does not grab headlines right away, but it can end up shaping the teams flexibility for years. [Read more 🡒]
Evander Kane Feels Like The Flames Debate Fans Dread Most
Evander Kane is back on the open market after a full season with the Vancouver Canucks, and his name is already circulating in the kind of conversations that tend to follow a veteran winger with a long track record and a recent injury history. At this stage of his career, the appeal is pretty clear: a proven scorer, plenty of edge, and enough experience that teams can picture him fitting into more than one kind of lineup.
For Edmonton, the intrigue is easy to understand because the Oilers have been linked to the same sort of low-cost, low-commitment path that could make sense for a player like Kane. A professional tryout would let everyone take a longer look before anything more permanent, and a one-year deal would keep the risk manageable if the fit is there, especially with the club still sorting through its forward depth and the uncertainty around some of its other options. [Read more 🡒]