{"id":1568656,"date":"2023-05-23T11:39:00","date_gmt":"2023-05-23T15:39:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sports7.us\/?p=1568656"},"modified":"2023-05-24T08:52:10","modified_gmt":"2023-05-24T12:52:10","slug":"connor-mcdavid-hockey-career-little-white-lie","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sports7.us\/news\/connor-mcdavid-hockey-career-little-white-lie\/","title":{"rendered":"Connor McDavid Started His Hockey Career With Some Help From a Little White Lie"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

These days, Connor McDavid<\/a> is one of the most dominant NHL players<\/a> around. While the Edmonton Oilers are yet to make it over the hump during his tenure<\/a>, it isn't because of the center's shortcomings. He's emerged as a legitimate offensive force and is capable of producing highlight-reel-worthy plays every time he touches the puck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But did you know there was a time when McDavid wasn't really supposed to be on the ice?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, you read that correctly. In the earliest days of his hockey career, a little white lie about his age was the only way Connor McDavid<\/a> made it onto the ice. Let's hope in the time machine and check it out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Connor McDavid started playing house league hockey while he was technically too young <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Connor
Connor McDavid was playing youth hockey earlier than the rules allowed. | Ethan Miller\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When you hear stories about professional athletes, they're often described as prodigious stars who took to their chosen game naturally. Connor McDavid, in hindsight, followed that path to a tee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I was four when my parents signed me up for house league in Newmarket,” the Oilers captain explained told The Hockey News<\/a> for an oral history of his career. “They lied about my age so I could play a year early. It\u2019s kinda funny how that started. I was impatient to play.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Upon reading that quote, the word “lied” probably stands out. Lying, even if it's reactively innocuous, isn't always something you openly admit to. Thankfully for everyone's curiosity, we got a bit more context from McDavid's mother. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“He was quite insistent, and it was a bit frustrating, because he missed the cutoff by 13 days,” Kelly McDavid explained. “We told him, ‘If they ask for your birth certificate, we\u2019ll have to tell them,' but they never did.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eventually, though, a problem emerged. When it came time to join a new team, there was no hiding Connor's age.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Two years later, he went to tryouts for the select team,” Kelly added. “He was probably the best player out there, so we had to call the Newmarket minor hockey association and tell them, ‘Look, he\u2019s not seven, he\u2019s six. But they skip kids in school if they\u2019re smart. Can\u2019t we do the same thing here?' They were adamant: no.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fear not, though, McDavid was eventually allowed to play up in the Aurora Hockey Association. That wasn't an ideal situation — the phenom was expected to carry the team despite being three years younger than his peers and felt the pressure — but it did allow the center to prove his chops. When it came time to try out for AAA hockey, he had more than enough experience under his belt to make the cut.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those moments set the template for McDavid's career going forward<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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