Spider-Man was wrong. Not anyone can wear the mask. Not anyone can wear the C for Canada either. They thought Connor McDavid could wear the C, they all forgot that he turns into an opossum at every single big moment. Game 7 in 2024 no points. Game 6 in 2025 no points. Gold medal game no points. Death, taxes, and McDavid being a non-factor in the big games. Of course he did win MVP of the tournament though, congrats Connor! Just kidding, you have made a career of winning MVPs in losing efforts. McDavid is the quintessential preliminary points merchant and as soon as his team needs him, he is nowhere to be found. The funniest thing about this entire ordeal is all of his Edmonton fans trying to say that it isn’t fault. I am just so confused by this sentiment. They said in Edmonton it wasn’t his fault; the supporting cast wasn’t good enough. Now he loses on team Canada and his wingers were both top 5 in NHL scoring. He was on maybe one of the best constructed hockey teams of all time in Milan, he still lost. So honest to God what is the excuse for him now? I’m willing to ignore how stupid the supporting cast in Edmonton excuse is because Leon Draisaitl is probably only a top 7 player, Ryan Nugent Hopkins was a 1st overall pick who has put up a 100-point season, and Evan Bouchard (by EDM fan accounts) should have been on team Canada. I am willing to ignore them all because Edmonton fans watch their team all year, they must know that isn’t enough help. Just kidding, they’re all idiots. Their brains can’t compute that their guy is just a gigantic loser. The only hope McDavid ever has at winning anything is when a true winner, Sidney Crosby, is on the ice with him. Otherwise, he will rack up his MVP trophies in losing efforts, put on a sad puppy dog face, and then just do the same thing the next season.

All that passing of the torch talk was such bullshit. If not for a terrorist, Radko Gudas, Crosby played with the C on his jersey for the entire tournament. McDavid will never be the rightful heir of the torch until he wins something without Sid present. He showed yesterday that he is not capable of doing such a thing. All this bullshit talk about McDavid’s supporting cast or his teammates not stepping up for him in the gold medal game when he was off the scoresheet is so stupid. McDavid literally had a breakaway. McDavid was on the ice for an extended 5-on-3 powerplay. McDavid had the puck in stride during overtime twice! All of those chances resulted in approximately zero goals. Sidney Crosby has played in two gold medal games. He scored in both, one of them was the most famous goal in modern NHL history. The other goal was a breakaway against Henrik Lundqvist. Take a look at the difference of these two videos.

McDavid in the game yesterday literally had his chance to do what Sid did in 2014, he didn’t even get a reliable shot on goal. What a complete joke. Everyone looks at his point totals and loses their minds. Those points don’t matter because they never come when it matters most. I really don’t think there is another comparable in sports. Someone who is thought to be the best of all time is constantly shut down in big games. As soon as the opposition raises their play to the occasion McDavid looks no better than a speedy 3rd liner.

It’s a shame McDavid has to be the focal point of this blog. Team USA won their first gold medal in 46 years. They won despite being dominated from the puck dropped for the 2nd period. The other Connor should be all anyone is talking about, Connor Hellebuyck. He was the true MVP of the game and the tournament. However, much of the rightful discussion should be around McDavid and his failures. All of Canada is rushing to defend this guy. He just completely folded for your country there’s no reason to defend him. One second, it’s a passing of the torch and another it’s not his fault when his team fails. When you wear the mask, or the C in this case, winning/losing is entirely on your shoulders. Crosby understands that and relishes in that fact. Then you have people taking about Crosby’s point totals during cup runs saying he’s never been the team’s top scorer in a playoff. That’s what they don’t understand, McDavid wants to win and Crosby wills his team to victory. He doesn’t give a single shit if he has zero points in a seven-game series, all that matters is his team winning. McDavid deep down would prefer to put up a goal per game and lose, if he didn’t feel this way he would simply stop doing it. Seeing Edmonton fans trying to defend their loser captain and Toronto media not know what to do now that Matthews has won something is my combined super-bowl. Really this could not have went any better. The discourse around much of Canada, unless you are an Edmonton simp, is that Canada wins that game if the true captain was on the ice and I wouldn’t want it any other way.

I could literally write a 10,000 thesis on McDavid and his losing ways. There are so many avenues to take considering his has lost in so many big games. However, I would be remiss to not talk about the USA more. What a win by the red, white, and blue. They weren’t the better performing team, but they found a way. Big time goaltending and Jack Hughes, while spittin chiclets, coming through.

It was the best collection of American talent in their Olympic history. They even left several key pieces at home. I was very critical of the roster, but it worked out. Trocheck and Miller were elite on the penalty kill, the reason they were selected to the team so I will crow on my opinions of those selections.

As I watching the game, I had a beyond casual hockey fan watching. He was shitting his pants because America was getting skated out of the rink. I said as long as Hellebuyck makes a big save or two, they will be fine. Helle made that save, and they were fine. A real puck knower knew to never be worried. Hockey games go like that all the time and usually the team that’s pressing the entire game ends up losing.

The goal that won it came of course with McDavid caught up ice. Though, the real problem was a bad pinch by Makar, leaving MacKinnon in no man’s land, and eventually he lost a puck battle. McDavid didn’t go take a body on his backcheck (losing hockey) but rather watched as a puck zipped by him onto the stick of Jack Hughes. What a goal, what a tournament.

This chapter is now closed and it’s time to get back to the real prize, Lord Stanley. If Edmonton makes it to the finals, bet the house on the team from the East.