Connor McDavid gets pokechecked, puck still goes in (VIDEO)

For defencemen, putting the puck in your net should be like a badge of honour — it's never intended and it's usually the result of trying to make the correct play. Take what happened to Carolina Hurricanes fourth-round pick Trevor Carrick while he was defending The Phenom, Connor McDavid, during the Mississauga Steelheads-Erie Otters OHL contest on Saturday night.

Midway through the second period, on a day where one might have wondered how sadistic it was to have rebuilding Mississauga face league-leading Erie on consecutive nights, the Otters went on the power play. McDavid, who had already set up the Otters' Teddy Bear Toss goal, got a pass from André Burakovsky at the left of the Steelheads' net. The combination of McDavid pivoting and Carrick's seemingly perfectly timed pokecheck sent the puck directly into the net, for the weirdest goal McDavid will score all season.

Carrick leads OHL defencemen with 13 goals, obviously not counting that one.

That was the third of McDavid's four points for the Otters, who won 7-1. As noted, he also set up left wing Michael Curtis for the first goal of the rout, bringing stuffed animals flying out of the stands in the annual tradition.

Talk about a cross to bear for the Steelheads, who have been outscored 20-2 during their three games against the suddenly star-studded Otters this season. McDavid also scored a beauty goal without any help on Friday night.

The good news for Mississauga is that it's done facing Erie after a home game on Dec. 11. That is the eve of the opening of Team Canada's national junior team selection camp a few kilometres away in Toronto, meaning McDavid should be available for the game. So again, no luck for the Steelheads.

Neate Sager is a writer for Yahoo! Canada Sports. Follow him on Twitter @neatebuzzthenet. Please address any questions, comments or concerns to btnblog@yahoo.ca.