Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid snatched another Wayne Gretzky record on Wednesday night. He provided two assists in the Oilers' win over the Calgary Flames on home ice. This gives the Edmonton captain the longest season-opening assist record in NHL history.
McDavid now has 36 points through 13 games after defeating the Flames. This is an incredible run that has not been seen in the NHL in decades. “Generational” is a word oft overused. In this instance, though, it absolutely fits.
Edmonton's captain is staring down the barrel of some incredible history this season. One of those major records is actually right over the horizon. Let's take a look at whether Connor McDavid can take down Gretzky's 50-point record in 2026-27.
Connor McDavid is chasing Wayne Gretzky's 50-point record
The record in question is the speed at which a player has reached 50 points in a single season. This record belongs to Wayne Gretzky. He scored 50 points in just 18 games during the 1983-84 campaign. Gretzky ended that season with 87 goals and 205 points.
Article Continues BelowMcDavid is currently on track to match this, at the very least. He has scored 2.77 points per game at this time. Across an 18-game stretch, this works out to about 49.86 points. If he maintains his current point pace, he can match this record.
It's also quite conceivable he surpasses it over the next five games. McDavid has to score 12 points in five games to beat the record. His season can be broken down into two five-game stretches. In his first five-game stretch, he scored three goals and 13 points. The second five-game stretch saw him score five goals and 18 points.
McDavid has shown the ability to put up the points he needs in this short amount of time. Whether he can become the fastest to 50 points in a single season remains to be seen. However, at his current rate, it isn't entirely out of the question this year.