It took until 13 minutes left in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final for Connor McDavid to score his first goal of the series, and it was after he and the Edmonton Oilers fell behind 3-0 to the Florida Panthers, on the way to losing and getting pushed to the brink.
Before that, he led all scorers with six assists, and only teammate Leon Draisaitl has more points than McDavid's seven. Of course, the best hockey player in the world is in the spotlight no matter what he does, and he hasn't been able to break out and put the Oilers on his back thanks in large part to Selke Trophy winner Aleksander Barkov and the Panthers keying in on him defensively and slowing him down at all costs.
Coach Kris Knoblauch thinks it has been a bit of an unfortunate final for McDavid given the amount of scoring chances that just haven't gone in.
"I think Connor's been one of our best players every single night, and that's what we expect," Knoblauch said Sunday. "I've got no issues with his game. Obviously, our team relies heavily on him and Leon and how they're playing, but I think that it's tight checking for everyone and it's not going to be a midseason game against a non-playoff team when sometimes he's had 10 or 12 scoring chances. Those numbers are obviously reduced playing against a good team like Florida."
The Panthers have defended McDavid and Draisaitl "reasonably well," according to coach Paul Maurice, who acknowledged two of the NHL's most talented forwards are bound to get their opportunities.