Connor McDavid, Oilers Visit Devils on Record Pace

Connor McDavid is chasing Wayne Gretzky, and he brings that chase to New Jersey on Tuesday night. McDavid has 9 goals and 30 assists through 15 games, and the Oilers visit the Devils at Prudential Center at 4:30 PM PT.

That pace is just silly. ESPN's math says it works out to 50 goals and 168 assists over a full 84-game season, or 218 points. That'd break Gretzky's single-season record by three. Nobody's saying he'll keep it up, but nobody's going to stop watching to find out, either.

Edmonton Hasn't Lost on the Road

The Oilers come in at 11-2-2, and they're a perfect 6-0-0 away from home. They're 7-2-1 in their last 10, scoring 3.8 goals a game. McDavid isn't doing it alone. Evan Bouchard has 8 goals and 18 assists from the blue line, and Leon Draisaitl has 9 goals and 10 assists over his last 10 games.

They're doing it shorthanded, too. Zach Hyman (neck), Frederik Andersen (knee) and Matt Savoie (lower body) are all out, and Isaac Howard is day to day with a lower-body injury.

Connor vs. Connor

The other storyline is in the Devils' crease. Connor Hellebuyck has won both of his starts for New Jersey, over two 2026 playoff teams, with a 1.50 goals-against average and a .923 save percentage. ESPN's Greg Wyshynski flagged this as a must-see game: "It's the Connor vs. Connor matchup we all want to see." Tuesday is likely Hellebuyck's first home start as a Devil.

New Jersey's no pushover at home. The Devils are 9-5 overall and 6-2-0 at the Rock, and they're 9-1-0 when they score at least three goals. Jack Hughes leads them with 6 goals and 10 assists, and Arseni Gritsyuk is red hot with 8 goals over his last 10 games, including two in the Devils' last game, a 5-2 win over Vegas.

That's the whole game in a nutshell. If the Devils get to three, they usually win. If McDavid and Draisaitl get rolling against a hot goalie, that formula gets tested fast.

What's Next

It's the first meeting of the season between these two. For Edmonton, it's a chance to keep the road record spotless. For Hellebuyck, it's a chance to show the home crowd why New Jersey wanted him in the first place.

The Smacktok lean: McDavid has 30 assists in 15 games and Edmonton's scoring nearly four a night on the road. Even against a hot Hellebuyck, we're leaning higher on McDavid's assists in Newark.