Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid sat in a press conference days after losing in the Stanley Cup Final to the Florida Panthers for the second straight season. He was peppered with questions about his future, with unrestricted free agency looming in summer 2026 if he doesn't sign an extension with the Oilers.

We’re drawing closer to a seismic shift in the NHL with it becoming increasingly apparent that Connor McDavid’s time in Edmonton is coming to a close. There’s a fever pitch to trade rumors as McDavid enters the offseason with one year left on his contract and no Stanley Cup to show for it.

One veteran NHL insider, however, doesn’t expect McDavid to make a similar decision to the last he did in terms of his next contract when he inked a max-term agreement with Edmonton in 2017.