Zdeno Chara thinks Connor McDavid could've scored 80 NHL points at 16

As a 21-year veteran of the National Hockey League, Zdeno Chara has been playing in the NHL for as long as Connor McDavid has been alive. The guy has seen some pretty amazing talent come and go in the league.

But as the rocksteady defenceman has noticed the emerging talent making its mark on today’s game is better than it has ever been.

“You see the skill they already have. It’s way more advanced,” the Boston Bruins captain told Reid Wilkins of 630 CHED. “In our era, it didn’t exist. If someone would say they’re taking a power skating class or a figure skating class, you would get laughed at,”

But he didn’t stop just there. Ahead of their matchup against the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday, Chara commented of the prowess of young NHL superstar, Connor McDavid.

“He probably could have played in the NHL at 16. He was so advanced,” the defenseman claimed. “As a 16-year-old, he probably would have had 80 points.”

In case you were wondering McDavid did at age 16, he scored 28 goals and recorded 99 points in just 56 games in the Ontario Hockey League with the Erie Otters. That’s pretty ridiculous for someone who was a junior in high school.

What the phenom will be able to do as a 21-year old this year will be something worth monitoring. With two Art Ross and Ted Lindsay trophies to his name, he has accomplished as much as any player within the first three seasons of his career. The next step for McDavid is to start building upon his playoff resume with the Oilers.

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