It’s a special treat for hockey fans whenever generational talents face off in an NHL game. No two players in the NHL fit that description better than Connor McDavid and Sidney Crosby. McDavid is in his ninth season, but because they are in different conferences, we’ve only had the pleasure of watching him compete against Crosby 13 times. They would need to play more frequently to develop a genuine rivalry, but looking at the all-time history of Crosby versus McDavid, a few fascinating narratives emerge.
Penguins Dominate in McDavid’s Early Years
From the beginning, McDavid found a way to find the scoresheet against the Penguins frequently. He got three assists in his first game against Pittsburgh. The young Oilers blew a 3-1 lead that night and lost 4-3 to the Pens despite Crosby being held pointless.
McDavid scored in the next two games against Crosby, who didn’t register a single point. Still, Pittsburgh edged the Oilers in a shootout in their second meeting, with both superstars scoring on their penalty shot attempts, and then Phil Kessel scored an overtime (OT) winner in their third matchup to win it for the Penguins again. In their fourth game against one another, Crosby recorded his first point against McDavid, and it was enough to lift the Penguins to a 3-2 win.
In 2018, Crosby finally had a standout performance against the Oilers, making it five consecutive wins against McDavid. In a back-and-forth offensive game, he scored one goal in regulation. Then, in overtime, Sid scored one of the prettiest goals of his career by undressing Ryan Strome and tucking a backhander underneath Cam Talbot’s glove for the 6-5 OT win. Both players picked up an assist in their sixth game, and the Penguins won 3-1. Matt Murray stoned McDavid on a penalty shot in the second period and had a standout performance that night.
While McDavid held his own individually, he could never lead his team to victory against Pittsburgh in his early years as the Oilers dropped the first six games when he faced Crosby head-to-head.
Oilers Have Dominated Recent Matchups
In a poetic “passing of the torch” shift, McDavid and the Oilers turned the tables starting in the 2019-20 season. Ironically, it began with a 2-1 win in which neither 87 nor 97 got a point; Leon Draisaitl was the overtime hero, giving McDavid his first win against Crosby. After that, McDavid began feasting on the Penguins, registering a four-point night three times in his next four games against the Pittsburgh.
Related: 7 Reasons Connor McDavid is the World’s Best Hockey Player
In March 2024, the Oilers demolished the old, sluggish-looking Penguins 6-1 and shut out Pittsburgh 4-0 just a week later. McDavid got six points over the two games, and Crosby was shut down offensively. Edmonton has outscored Pittsburgh 35-10 over the past seven games when Sid and Connor are in the lineup. The all-time series between the two generational talents is now 7-6 in favour of McDavid.
McDavid Has Had More Individual Success Head-to-Head
The team’s success in the Crosby vs McDavid all-time series has swung from one direction to another. Still, McDavid has owned his childhood idol from start to finish in terms of individual performances.
Here are some key stats from their first six matchups:
| Crosby | McDavid | |
| Record | 6-0-0 | 0-3-3 |
| Goals | 2 | 3 |
| Assists | 2 | 7 |
| Points | 4 | 10 |
| Plus/Minus | Plus-1 | Even |
| Faceoff % | 50 | 46 |
McDavid produced more offence but didn’t win the games. Crosby doesn’t have the most impressive numbers against the Oilers, but he did well enough to win. His experience in the face-off circle compared to McDavid was pretty apparent, too, with Sid being 50% and Connor only 46%.
Here are how their numbers looked in the last seven matchups:
| Crosby | McDavid | |
| Record | 0-6-1 | 7-0-0 |
| Goals | 1 | 6 |
| Assists | 2 | 11 |
| Points | 3 | 17 |
| Plus/Minus | Minus-13 | Plus-15 |
| Faceoff % | 56.2 | 51.3 |
McDavid’s dominance is even more pronounced against an older Penguins team, reflected in his stats and the final scores. The only aspect of this matchup where Crosby has continually improved is his face-off win rate, but now McDavid also wins most of his draws.
In fairness to Crosby, he was already a ten-year veteran by the time McDavid entered the league, and as Connor approached his prime, Sid strayed further away from his. He’s still one of the league’s best players at 36 years old, but McDavid has gotten the better of him head-to-head. Perhaps it would have been much closer if they faced one another in their primes. Sadly, we will never know.
We Don’t Have Many of These Games Left
After this season, Crosby has just one year left on his contract. He is slowly approaching his 40s, and his career is entering its twilight years. While I fully expect him to sign a short-term deal (whether that’s in Pittsburgh or elsewhere in another conversation), we still only have a handful of these Crosby vs McDavid matchups left.
With the Four Nations Face-Off coming up next year and NHL participation in the 2026 Winter Olympic Games, we’ll see Crosby and McDavid as teammates more times than we see them as adversaries from now on. It will be fascinating to see them elevate each other’s games as a duo rather than competitors.
