McDavid scores 100th point of season for Oilers in 53rd game

Connor McDavid scored his 100th point of the season for the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday in his 53rd game.

McDavid scored four points (one goal, three assists) in a 4-3 win against the Vancouver Canucks to become the first player in 25 years, and ninth in NHL history, to score at least 100 points through his first 53 games of a season. Mario Lemieux (126) and Jaromir Jagr (101) of the Pittsburgh Penguins each did it in 1995-96, the 24th and 25th time it was accomplished.
McDavid has 32 goals and 68 assists.
"I was trying not to think about it," he said. "I was trying to get myself ready to go in the playoffs and keep my game where it needs to be. Obviously when you're sitting around 96, 97, 98 points and you get to 99, it's obviously in the back of your mind, and thankfully I didn't have to wait too long to get there."
McDavid scored 45 seconds into the first period, then had an assist on a second-period goal by Jesse Puljujarvi and on two by Leon Draisaitl.
"Four-point nights aren't something that come regularly," McDavid said. "I was just trying to come in and play a good game, play like I can. My legs felt pretty good. I was able to get on the board on the first shift, that always helps. I think after the first one, it kind of crosses your mind, and I was fortunate to feel pretty good throughout the night, and a couple of great shots from my teammates."
It is the fourth time McDavid scored 100 points in a season. It took him 66 games during the 2018-19 season (34 goals, 66 assists), when he finished with his NHL career-high 116 (41 goals, 75 assists) in 78 games played.
It took him 77 games in 2017-18, when he scored 108 (41 goals, 67 assists) in 82 games; and took him 82 games in 2016-17 (30 goals, 70 assists).
This NHL season was reduced to 56 games and began in January because the 2020 Stanley Cup Final ended Sept. 28 after last season was paused due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus.
McDavid's scoring rate of 1.88 points per game this season would generate 154 points in a traditional 82-game schedule.
"Honestly, it's just impressive," Draisaitl said. "I don't think my English is good enough to find another word for it right now. It's incredible. We've played 50-some games, he's at 100 points. It's just very impressive and fun to be a part of."
McDavid leads the NHL by 21 points ahead of Draisaitl, who scored his 30th goal of the season and 500th NHL point.
"It's so special to share it with them," McDavid said. "To see how excited they were, obviously, for 'Leo' to score, and for 'Nursey' [Darnell Nurse] to have an assist on it too, I mean those are two guys that I've come in with, and have a great bond with, and the whole group, like I said, it's a fun group to be a part of right now and we're excited where we're headed."
McDavid has scored at least two points in five straight games and in 10 of his past 11. He has scored 31 points in his past 11 games and 60 in his past 28.
"We were just talking about it in there with the coaches, we're talking about the last month he's had and how many points he's had," Edmonton coach Dave Tippett said. "Then somebody said, "You've got to remember this is the NHL and it's the best league in the world.' And this is a player that gets checked harder than any other player in the League. I guarantee every team comes in here and talks about how they want to check him and how they want to keep him off the board and he still does what he does, which is … it's an amazing, amazing feat, what he's doing."
The Oilers captain scored 21 points (eight goals, 13 assists) against the Canucks in nine games this season.
"It's special. It's a very special night, mostly for him of course, but for us, as his teammates to be a part of it," Draisaitl said. "I think you can sense early on that he had his legs. He obviously wanted to do it on Saturday night, 'Hockey Night in Canada.' … I don't know what else to say. It's impressive. I think he's the best player in the world. It's fun to be a part of."
Other than his rookie season of 2015-16, when McDavid scored 48 points (16 goals, 32 assists) in 45 games, he has never scored fewer than 97 points in a season.
He scored 97 points (34 goals, 63 assists) in 64 games last season, 13 behind Draisaitl for the NHL lead. Draisaitl played seven more games.
Lemieux reached 100 points in 38 games, and Jagr did so in 52 games in 1995-96.
"He's right up there with all of them," Draisaitl said. "It's hard to compare eras, it's hard to compare generations. The game has changed. Whatever those guys did in the past is impressive. What Connor's doing is impressive. He's right up there with those guys."
McDavid, who was chosen with the No. 1 pick in the 2015 NHL Draft, has scored 569 points (194 goals, 375 assists) in 404 regular-season games. The 24-year-old has scored at least 30 goals in each of his past five NHL seasons and has finished first or second in scoring every season since 2016-17.
"It solidifies that he is one of the top players to ever play the game," Tippett said. "The level that he's played at this year, just what he's accomplished is one of those years, when you look at Wayne [Gretzky] or you look at Mario, it's one of those years where he's taken his talents to another level that is just elite for the League."
The Oilers (33-18-2) have clinched a berth in the playoffs and will finish second in the seven-team Scotia North Division, behind the Toronto Maple Leafs.
"As for my game, I've just been focusing on trying to be prepared each and every night, and I think obviously team success comes first and our team's been able to play some good hockey most of the season with the exception of probably the first month there," McDavid said. "So when the team is playing well, that's when individuals are having success, and you're seeing lots of guys on our team have some really good seasons."
Edmonton ends the regular season with games at the Montreal Canadiens on Monday and Wednesday, and at home against the Canucks next Saturday.
"We obviously have bigger things to worry about," McDavid said. "We're going to play a big series against Montreal. It'll be a good test for us to get ready for the playoffs. We obviously want to go on a good run here, so we're gearing up for that and we need to focus on that more than anything else."
NHL.com staff writer Tim Campbell contributed to this report