EDMONTON -- Connor McDavid was surprised coach Jay Woodcroft was fired by the Edmonton Oilers on Sunday and replaced by Kris Knoblauch, his coach in junior hockey.
McDavid said he did not have any input in the decision, which was announced by general manager Ken Holland and CEO of hockey operations Jeff Jackson.
"I woke up to a text like a lot of you guys did as well," McDavid said Monday. "I know the narrative out there obviously, but it couldn't be further from the truth."
Knoblauch won his debut as Oilers coach, 4-1 against the New York Islanders at Rogers Place on Monday.
Knoblauch was in his fifth season as coach of Hartford, the New York Rangers' American Hockey League affiliate, before being hired by the Oilers. His only previous NHL experience was as an assistant with the Philadelphia Flyers from 2017-19, and eight games as coach of the Rangers from 2020-22 because of COVID-19 protocols.
But most of the attention on Knoblauch's coaching resume has been focused on 2012-15, when he coached McDavid with Erie of the Ontario Hockey League.
"It's been a really long time obviously," McDavid said. "I thought he was great in junior and I don't know much of what he's been up to (since then). Obviously he's been coaching in the NHL as an assistant and the American league as a head coach. He's a young voice, which I think is great, it resonates with a lot of guys in this room. He's someone that I'm looking forward to working with."
Jackson had said Sunday the players, including McDavid, were not spoken with prior to the coaching change.
"We didn't consult with the players on this decision," he said. "We never spoke with Connor or Leon [Draisaitl], or 'Nuge' [Ryan Nugent-Hopkins] or 'Nursey' [Darnell Nurse], any of the others in the leadership group. ... So, the fact that Kris was Connor's coach in Erie in 2014-15, it only has something to do with this because I think Kris Knoblauch is a very good coach. Connor didn't have anything to do with this decision and neither did the others in the leadership group."
Alongside Knoblauch will be assistant Paul Coffey, who replaced Dave Manson when he was fired along with Woodcroft. Coffey had been with the Oilers as a special advisor to the owner and chairman.
Edmonton (4-9-1) is seventh in the Pacific Division and six points behind the St. Louis Blues for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference.
"First and foremost, I was obviously surprised, I didn’t see it coming," McDavid said. “I loved playing for 'Woody,' loved playing for 'Mans.' They are two guys who I think are unbelievable coaches and I think they'll be in the League (again) very, very soon. Two great coaches."
Edmonton was expected to be a Stanley Cup contender after returning the core of the team that finished second in the Pacific last season (50-23-9) under Woodcroft and lost to the Vegas Golden Knights in the second round of the playoffs.
The Oilers had lost four straight and eight of its previous nine (1-7-1) before a 4-1 win at the Seattle Kraken on Saturday.
"Obviously our play hasn't been good enough and I'm first on the list there," McDavid said. "Our play needs to be better. It's the reason that two good guys lost their job and obviously as players we have to be better."
McDavid had a goal and an assist Monday; he has 12 points (three goals, nine assists) in 12 games this season. His goal against the Islanders was his first in nine games. He missed two games because of an upper-body injury sustained Oct. 21 against the Winnipeg Jets and returned to play in the 2023 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic at Commonwealth Stadium on Oct. 29.
"He (Woodcroft) never lost the room, I didn't think," McDavid said. "He never lost the room."
