McDavid needs to get kicked in the balls to play desperate imo. I feel like it's pretty clear he is hardwired this way now. He needs to be inspired to play his best, and sometimes that happens when he plays the leafs or crosby, but most often it happens when his back is against the wall and he's actually desperate
Leon always plays like this at the start too. I'm sort of surprised people are finally calling it out. He's been hard to cheer for in early season his entire career imo. Two seasons ago his habits were even worse