Oilers most in-form player drops perfect response to horrible reporter question on recent failures

Connor McDavid is back in Edmonton, and the local news didn’t take long to put the pressure on the star captain.

After his first practice since losing a tough Olympic final, the best player in the world faced reporters.

While most people expected usual questions about the tiring travel, experienced journalist Mark Spector decided to ask something surprising that took everyone by surprise.

Spector pointed out that hockey greats like Wayne Gretzky and Sidney Crosby managed to win Stanley Cups and Olympic gold medals during their best years.

He then bluntly questioned McDavid about why he hasn’t been able to achieve those big wins even though he has put himself in similar situations. The 29-year-old player quickly responded with a heavy dose of sarcasm, saying, “That’s a nice question, thank you,” before taking a moment to think.

Instead of getting angry in front of the cameras, the Oilers captain gave a very honest and deep answer about the tough reality of professional sports.

McDavid surprisingly said that feeling disappointed again is really hard and there’s no way to make the pain of losing feel better.

He noted that if a few things had gone differently during that tough overtime loss to Team USA on Sunday, the whole discussion would be very different.

Winning at a high level is extremely difficult, especially when you are competing against the very best players in the NHL and at the Winter Olympics.

He pointed out that the difference between winning a championship and going home without anything is very small when the pressure is at its highest.

Amazing how different things look when you play the entire clip. McDavid made a joke and then gave a good answer. @spittinchiclets should show full clip next time. pic.twitter.com/18PZuiR9kB

— Jason Gregor (@JasonGregor) February 26, 2026

The Oilers’ changing room has really felt the hurt from those tiny differences during their long playoff journeys in recent years.

Throughout his time in the NHL, the star center has shown he can manage the intense stress of playing in a tough Canadian hockey scene without skipping a beat.

Look for him to take all that bottled-up frustration and put it straight into his game as Edmonton fights hard for a Stanley Cup this spring. The rest of the teams in the league are now aware.