Wayne Gretzky compares McDavid, Draisaitl to himself, Mark Messier

The Edmonton Oilers have plenty of reason to feel good about themselves after a 5-0-0 start to the season.

Even ‘The Great One,’ Wayne Gretzky is buying into the team’s hot start, offering the highest of praise for Edmonton’s current stars, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.

“Mark [Messier] and I never looked at each other like we expected the other guy to do this, or do that,” Gretzky said to Mark Spector of Sportsnet. “We just knew our roles and what we brought to the hockey club, and we pushed each other to make it that much more of a contribution to the group.”

“You can see that now with the two of them,” he went on to say about McDavid and Draisaitl. “They’re very unselfish with each other — they have no egos — and as important as Connor is to Leon, Leon is to Connor. A lot like Mark [Messier] and I were.”

Especially considering the source, there really is no greater compliment to receive as a member of the Oilers. Gretzky and Messier won four Stanley Cups together, the latter winning another one with the Oilers in 1990 after the former was traded to the Los Angeles Kings.

McDavid and Draisaitl have contributed on 16 of Edmonton’s 22 goals thus far. In order for the Oilers to remain competitive, those two will have to continue to be the best players on the ice each and every night.

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