Heartbreaking.
More than the Stanley Cup Final and more than the World Juniors. That loss hurt. Canada played an amazing game, Connor McDavid leading them, and they sadly couldn’t close it out. They’ll be mired by missed chances, and the inability to rise to the occasion will be etched into all of their minds for years to come.
McDavid was a monster in the Olympics. He almost set the record for points by a Canadian in Olympic tournaments in his first crack at it, and will no doubt smash that record in 2030. He was dominant in almost every game he played, was noticeably generational, and was named Olympic MVP.
However nice that individual accomplishment is, it has given McDavid a unique honour that I’m sure he wants no part of.
McDavid is the first player in history to win a Conn Smythe Trophy and Olympic MVP but fail to win the Stanley Cup or Olympic gold medal.
List of Conn Smythe Trophy winners in losing efforts
McDavid won the Conn Smythe as the NHL playoffs MVP in 2024 in the Edmonton Oilers’ first loss to the Florida Panthers. He didn’t come back onto the ice to accept the award.
He was the sixth Conn Smythe winner in a losing effort in NHL history:
- 1966: Roger Crozier, Detroit Red Wings
- 1968: Glenn Hall, St. Louis Blues
- 1976: Reggie Leach, Philadelphia Flyers
- 1987: Ron Hextall, Philadelphia Flyers
- 2003: Jean-Sebastien Giguere, Anaheim Mighty Ducks
- 2024: Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers
Crozier and Hall never played in any major international events.
Leach played in the Canada Cup, but no Olympics.
Giguere played in the World Championships, but no Olympics.
Hextall played in the Canada Cup and World Championships, but no Olympics
List of Olympic MVPs
The Olympic MVP award is relatively new.
- 1948: Vaclav Rozinak, Czechoslovakia
- 2002: Joe Sakic, Canada
- 2006: Antero Nittymaki, Finland
- 2010: Ryan Miller, USA
- 2014: Teemu Selanne, Finland
- 2018: Ilya Kovalchuk, Russia (played under OAR banner)
- 2022: Juraj Slafkovsky, Slovakia
- 2026: Connor McDavid, Canada
From this list, Sakic and Kovalchuk are the only two players to win an Olympic gold medal.
Not a fun club to be the president of
The Venn diagram of Olympic MVPs and Conn Smythe winners in losing efforts is one player: McDavid.
Hopefully he can flip the script this season with the Oilers and secure his first Cup. And, you know he’ll be filled with motivation in 2030 when he represents Canada in the Olympics again, likely as the full-time captain.
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