Oilers respond to rumor McDavid had Jay Woodcroft fired.
The Oilers address the rumors of Connor McDavid's involvement in the firing of Jay Woodcroft.
In their attempt to address a rumor that has been making the rounds today, the Edmonton Oilers may have made things look even worse.
On Sunday, the Oilers made the move to fire former head coach Jay Woodcroft, replacing him with Kris Knoblauch who coached McDavid in junior when both men were with the Erie Otters of the Ontario Hockey League. This led to speculation that McDavid could have played a role in having his now former coach replaced, given McDavid's ties to Knoblauch.
When asked about the potential involvement of players in the decision to fire Woodcroft on Sunday, Oilers CEO of hockey operations Jeff Jackson, who just so happens to be McDavid's former agent, flat out denied that there had been any involvement from the players at all.
“We didn’t consult with the players on this decision. They are here to play hockey. They don’t like being involved in these types of decision. Connor and the other leaders had nothing to do with this decision,” said Jeff Jackson as per Thomas Drance.
Unfortunately it would seem that Oilers leadership isn't all on the same page. Drance also reports that Oilers general manager Ken Holland confirmed on Sunday that he had in fact involved his veteran players in the conversation.
You can hear Holland confirm as much himself, in his own words:
Needless to say the response to these blatantly contradictory statements on the part of Oilers leadership has not exactly been positive.
