Should Connor McDavid Have Accepted The Conn Smythe Trophy?

The Florida Panthers won the Stanley Cup for the first time in franchise history after a thrilling 2-1 victory in Game Seven over the Edmonton Oilers. But many fans were surprised when Oilers captain Connor McDavid was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy, which is given to the player deemed most valuable to their team during the Stanley Cup playoffs. 

This is the sixth time in NHL history that the trophy was given to a member of the losing team (first time since Mighty Ducks goalie Jean-Sebatian Giguere won it in 2003). The announcement was greeted by boos as the home crowd thought that star goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky or top centre Aleksander Barkov should have been awarded instead. 

The most controversial moment of the night was McDavid not accepting the award on the ice and staying in the locker room with his teammates instead. Hockey fans have debated whether that was a good move by the face of hockey or whether he should have come out to receive the award, especially with his parents in the audience. 

McDavid Did The Right Thing By Not Accepting The Trophy 

It was the right decision for McDavid not to accept the award on the ice. He and his teammates were devastaed after the heartbreaking, close loss. As the captain, McDavid puts the team first and would rather be there for his teammates than prioritize an award for himself. 

Giguere accepted the award in 2003 despite being on the losing side, but that doesn’t mean that McDavid had to as well. In the end, it doesn’t matter whether he accepted the trophy or not because it’s not that big of a deal. Connor played his heart out and winning this trophy likely motivates him to come back and fight for the Stanley Cup again next year. 

Congratulations to the Florida Panthers on winning the Stanley Cup and the start of 2024-25 season cannot get here soon enough!