"He's not Mario or Gretzky" - NHL analyst delivers harsh truth after Connor McDavid gets 'silenced' once again in Stanley Cup Final

Connor McDavid has now come short of the Stanley Cup twice in a row. Following a humbling defeat in Game 6 on Tuesday, McDavid's bid for his first title is over. That was the case last year, and he finished one game further from it in 2025.

One hockey insider believes McDavid, who is put in all-time conversations and compared to some of the best to ever do it, might not be one of the greats because of that.

"I feel for McDavid. Remarkable player," NHL insider Josh Yohe said. "But he's never won anything (other than 4 Nations). 66 and 99 never were silenced with the Cup on the line. It will live with him until he finally wins it. He's not Mario or Gretzky. Might want to pipe down comparisons until he wins it all."

The Edmonton Oilers won three games in the final during the 2024 season but only two this year.

The Florida Panthers were a juggernaut, outscoring the Oilers 21-8 in their four wins. If you exclude the overtime win for Florida, the margin is 16-4. McDavid and the Oilers came up well short.

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Connor McDavid praises Panthers following Stanley Cup

For the second straight year, the Edmonton Oilers lost the Stanley Cup Final to the Florida Panthers, who resolved not to let Connor McDavid beat them. It was successful, and they managed not to let him get the Conn Smythe Trophy this year.

Connor McDavid lost the cup again (Credits: Imagn)

“We lost to a really good team. Nobody quit, nobody threw the towel in, but they’re a heck of a team," McDavid said after the game (via NHL). "They’re back-to-back Stanley Cup champions for a reason.”

“Their forecheck was great, they tilted the rink. They were able to stay on top of us all over the place and we were never really able to generate any momentum up the ice. We kept trying the same thing over and over again, banging our heads against the wall. Credit to them, they played well.”

The Oilers came back from three games to none last year to force Game 7, but the 3-2 deficit they faced in this series was too much to overcome.