Edmonton Oilers centre Connor McDavid of Richmond Hill, Ontario became the fourth player in National Hockey League history to register 100 assists in a season. He accomplished the feat in a 9-2 Edmonton Oilers triumph over the San Jose Sharks on Monday night at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta.
McDavid recorded the historic assist on a goal by Zach Hyman of Toronto, Ontario. At the time the Oilers took a 9-1 lead with four minutes and 25 seconds left in the second period. It was McDavid’s second point of the game. He opened the scoring from Darnell Nurse of Hamilton, Ontario at the 53 second mark.
The first three players to have 100 assists in a game were also Canadian. Boston Bruins defenseman Bobby Orr of Parry Sound, Ontario had 102 assists in 1970-71. He was followed by Edmonton Oilers and Los Angeles centre Wayne Gretzky of Brantford, Ontario who had 100 assists in a season 11 straight seasons (109 in 1980-81 with the Oilers, 120 in 1981-82 with the Oilers, 125 in 1982-83 with the Oilers, 118 in 1983-84 with the Oilers, 135 in 1984-85 with the Oilers, 163 in 1985-86 with the Oilers, 121 in 1986-87 with the Oilers, 109 in 1987-88 with the Oilers, 114 in 1988-89 with the Kings, 102 in 1989-90 with the Kings, and 122 in 1990-91 with the Kings). Meanwhile, Pittsburgh Penguins centre Mario Lemieux of Montreal, Quebec had 114 assists in 1988-89.
In 2023-24, McDavid has 32 goals and 100 assists for 132 points in 75 games. He is a +37 with 30 penalty minutes, 44 power-play points, one shorthanded point, five game-winning goals, 261 shots on goal, 435 faceoff wins, 38 blocked shots, 116 hits, 68 takeaways and 82 giveaways.
With the win, the Oilers improved to a record of 49 wins, 25 regulation losses and six losses in extra time for 104 points. They are in second place in the Pacific Division and three points back of the Vancouver Canucks.
