One of the greatest OHL players of all time is set to have his number retired by the Erie Otters
It's been nearly 10 years since Connor McDavid's last game in the OHL, which was an unfortunate loss in Game 5 of the 2015 OHL Finals to the Oshawa Generals.
Alas, the mark No. 97 left on the league was legendary, and the argument can be made that he has been one of the most influential players to come into the OHL over the last 20 years.
The Erie Otters announced Saturday morning that in 97 days on Jan. 10, the organization will raise McDavid's No. 97 to the rafters.
McDavid's journey to stardom started when he was 13 years old playing in the GTHL. OHL scouts couldn't wait until he was draft-eligible because you could see his unworldly talent at such a young age playing against older competition.
In 2011-12, he played a year up with the powerhouse Toronto Marlboros U16 AAA, recording an absurd 209 points in 88 games, which every hockey fan loves to go back and look at on his Elite Prospects Page.
Before the 2012 OHL Priority Selection took place, McDavid was the third player to be granted exceptional status and start his OHL career as a 15-year-old.
It was a given that the Erie Otters would select him first overall in the OHL Draft as soon as he became eligible. This secured the greatest player to ever wear the Otters jersey in history and changed their franchise forever.
McDavid never won an OHL Championship with Erie, but he did ring in a ton of accolades during his tenure in the league.
He won Rookie of the Year after registering 66 points in 63 games in his first season. Following his stellar performance, Connor had a 71-assist, 99-point season in 56 games in year two. He also took home the OHL and CHL Scholastic Player of the Year awards, as well as the OHL's Most Sportsmanlike Player award.
Then it was one of the most anticipated seasons in not just his career, but for the entire hockey world; his NHL draft season.
Two words to describe McDavid's 2014-15 season — tremendous and unfair.
Unfair, because no OHL team could stop him. As captain of the Otters, he put up 120 points in only 47 games, and a league-high plus-60. That's producing at a 2.55 point-per-game clip. He also won gold at the 2015 World Juniors with Canada and was voted one of the tournament's best forwards.
As mentioned earlier, Erie lost in five games in the OHL Championship Series to Oshawa that season. However, McDavid did everything in his power to carry his team as far as they would go, exactly what he did this past year with the Edmonton Oilers in their run to the Stanley Cup Final.
He took home the OHL's Playoffs MVP trophy after leading the playoffs in scoring with 49 points in 20 games. Remi Elle was second on the team in points with 24.
To end his junior career, before eventually going first overall to the Edmonton Oilers in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, McDavid brought home the CHL Player of the Year, CHL Scholastic Player of the Year (again alongside the OHL's same award), CHL Top Draft Prospect Award, and the OHL's Most Oustanding Player in the regular season.
Connor McDavid holds the fourth-most points record in Erie Otters history with 285 but he did that in only 166 games. Detroit Red Wings forward Alex DeBrincat is the only Otters player to have outproduced No. 97 in a year three-span, with a points-per-game of 1.74 to McDavid's 1.72.
A pre-game ceremony will be held before Erie's game against Saginaw on Jan. 10, before McDavid joins Brad Boyes (16) and Vince Scott (18) as the third Otters alumni to have his number retired by the organization.
“My time in Erie was so special to me and I can’t wait to go back and celebrate with you all.” said McDavid, “See you January 10th – Go Otters Go!”
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