Connor McDavid is 27 years old. The Richmond Hill, Ontario native is the captain of the Edmonton Oilers and he is arguably the best player in the National Hockey League. Last weekend, McDavid participated in the All-Star festivities in Toronto. Not surprisingly, he won the revamped skills competition. He put on quite a show for hockey fans with triumphs in the fastest skater, stick handling, shooting accuracy and obstacle course events..
McDavid won a cool one million dollars U.S. for his victory, but does he really need a million bucks? He's rolling in dough. On July 5, 2017, McDavid signed an eight-year $100 million contract extension with the Oilers, which came into effect at the start of the 2018-19 season.
When McDavid was asked what he intended to do with his skill competition winnings, he replied the he would be giving some away to his teammates and might even donate some to charity. Oh, Connor! Why don't you donate it all to charity? There are so many people out there who need your support more than your teammates need it. A million dollar can go a long way in improving this world. It can alleviate a great deal of suffering.
I admire Connor's hockey skills, but I would admire him even more if he would use his talent and his good fortune for the betterment of society. There are so many important causes - medical research, mental illness, addiction, homelessness . . . the list goes on.
Some may argue that the million dollars is McDavid's money and he can do whatever he wants with it? That may be so, but shouldn't it be put to better use? Perhaps the winner of the NHL All-Star competition should be required to donates the money to the charity of his choice. Why reward star athletes with money they don't need? It just makes the NHL appear greedy, selfish and uncaring. Nah! That can't be true, can it?
- Joanne
