Oilers’ Draisaitl on McDavid’s quest for 2,000 points: “I never bet against Connor McDavid”

Connor McDavid may have just reached 1,000 points last night, but his Edmonton Oilers teammate Leon Draisaitl is already upping the stakes.

After beating Scott Wedgewood on a one-timer on a pass from Draisaitl, McDavid became the fourth-fastest player in NHL history to reach 1,000 career points, doing so in just 659 games.

There’s little doubt in anyone’s mind that when McDavid’s career is said and done, he will be among the top scorers in league history. That said, few considered that he may have the opportunity to become just the second player ever to hit the 2,000-point marker.

“If not him, who else?” Draisaitl said after the game. “That’s the only question I have. I never bet against Connor McDavid, I’ve learned that over the last 10 years. It wouldn’t surprise me.”

After what had been a bit of a slow start to the season for McDavid, he appears back to being his elite self with six points in his last two games. The 27-year-old is now up to 19 points in 14 games and appears to be well on his way to recording the eighth 100+ point season of his brilliant career.

McDavid also became just the fourth player to record 1,000 points in an Oilers sweater, joining Mark Messier, Jari Kurri, and Wayne Gretzky. He has a long way to go to surpass the 1,669 points Gretzky managed while with the Oilers, but if anyone can do it, it’s him.

Speaking of Gretzky, the 63-year-old is the only player in NHL history to have recorded more than 2,000 points, finishing his career with a jaw-dropping 2,857. While McDavid won’t catch that ridiculous total, he does have a legitimate shot at becoming the second to reach 2,000. Jaromir Jagr currently sits second all-time in NHL scoring with 1,921 points.

Though there is obviously a ton of work that remains in his pursuit of recording another 1,000, the fact that it is even discussed as a possibility speaks to McDavid’s brilliance.

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