Connor McDavid Refuses to Blame Goalies After Oilers' Collapse

The Edmonton Oilers got absolutely demolished by the Dallas Stars, and there was plenty of blame to go around. An 8-3 loss is the kind of result that exposes every weakness a team has, and for the Oilers, it was a complete breakdown from start to finish.

The easiest target after a night like that is always the goaltending, but Connor McDavid wasn't having it. Speaking to the media after the game, McDavid made it clear that pointing fingers at the goalies would be missing the point entirely. The Oilers hung their netminders out to dry, and McDavid wasn't about to let anyone pretend otherwise.

Connor McDavid Takes Accountability

McDavid has been around long enough to know that goaltending struggles are rarely just about the goalie. When a team gets shelled for eight goals, it's a collective failure, and the captain wasn't shy about saying so.

"I really feel like goaltending is a team thing," McDavid told reporters. "It's tough for goalies to look good when the group in front of them is not playing well."

“I really feel like goaltending is a team thing. I don’t care who it is: When the team in front of them isn’t playing up to their standards, tough for a goalie to look good. I felt bad for both of them tonight.”

- Connor McDavid after the @EdmontonOilers 8-3 loss to Dallas pic.twitter.com/vudpqgi5HT
— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) November 26, 2025

It's a simple point, but an important one. Goalies can only do so much when they're facing odd-man rushes, scrambles in front of the net, and constant pressure because the team can't clear the zone or win a puck battle. On a night like Tuesday, both Edmonton goalies were left on an island, and McDavid knew it.

He continued, "I don't really care who it is; when the team in front of them is not playing up to their standards, it's tough for a goalie to look good. I felt bad for both of them tonight."

That's leadership. Instead of deflecting blame or staying silent, McDavid stepped up and made sure everyone understood where the real problem was. The Oilers didn't lose because of their goalies. They lost because the entire team failed to execute.

Oilers Have A Systemic Problem

The scary part for Edmonton isn't just that they lost badly. It's that this kind of performance has happened multiple times this season. The Oilers have stretches where they look like a legitimate Stanley Cup contender, and then they have nights like that where they get completely run out of the building.

Defensive breakdowns, turnovers in dangerous areas, and a complete lack of urgency in their own zone have been recurring issues all year. You can't win consistently in the NHL when you're giving up high-danger chances at the rate Edmonton does, and no goalie in the world can bail you out every night.

McDavid's comments were a reminder that fixing this team starts with the group in front of the net, not the guys wearing the pads. If the Oilers want to turn their season around, they need to start playing defense like a team that actually cares about winning.

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