NHL insider drops a McDavid to Toronto shocker that would flip the entire league
Chris McCluskey dropped the kind of hot take Thursday that makes Edmonton Oilers fans either laugh, panic, or both.
The premise is bold. McCluskey wrote that with Toronto's first overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, this becomes the only window Edmonton ever gets to trade Connor McDavid for a top selection.
"This is the only chance Edmonton's ever going to have to get a first overall pick for Connor McDavid." That's the analyst's line, posted on X.
The reverse angle is the part that lands. McDavid would be moving to a team with a first overall pick already in hand. That softens what he'd otherwise drag out of the receiving roster.
McCluskey isn't predicting it. He's saying it's been discussed in front offices because the idea is too obvious for nobody to have raised it.
The Toronto piece is interesting. Auston Matthews is signed long-term, and the analyst suggests McDavid has always had a soft spot for that market.
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Bowman and Treliving face the most uncomfortable question in hockey
Stan Bowman has been the Oilers GM since July 2024. He's been clear about the McDavid window every time he's talked to reporters.
The window just narrowed in Round 1. Anaheim eliminated Edmonton in 6 games, and McDavid's playoff line read 6 points across 6 games at minus-8.
That's not an indictment of the player. It's a window indicator. The 12.5 million cap hit produced 138 points in the regular season. The supporting cast didn't get the job done in May.
John Chayka has his own captain problem. Darren Dreger reported this week that Auston Matthews remains committed to Toronto, but expects evidence the roster is improving.
That's where this gets surreal. The two highest-profile Canadian centers in the league are both in moments where their franchises have to convince them the picture is changing.
The McCluskey idea would solve both problems at once. Toronto pairs McDavid and Matthews.
Edmonton starts a real rebuild with a top pick and McDavid's contract relief.
Nobody is saying it's going to happen.
The cap math, the no-movement clause, the optics of trading the best player in hockey to a division rival. All real obstacles.
But this is the kind of summer where ideas that sound impossible in February get phone calls in July. The Oilers haven't been this far from a Cup since the McDavid era started.
The next 30 days decide whether this idea has legs or stays an internet thought experiment.
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MAY 14, 2026
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