Injured Edmonton Oilers rookie phenom Connor McDavid will have to wait until after the All-Star break to make his return to the lineup, Oilers coach Todd McLellan announced Saturday.
McDavid, whom the Oilers took with the No. 1 overall pick in last year's draft, has been sidelined since sustaining a broken left clavicle in a Nov. 3 win over the Philadelphia Flyers. After the injury, Oilers general manager Peter Chiarelli said only that the 18-year-old center would be out "months."
The team maintains it has no precise timetable for McDavid's return, only that he won't be ready before the Jan. 30-31 weekend break, according to McLellan.
"We've determined Connor is not physically ready to play between now and then," McLellan said.
McDavid has seen progress in his recovery, rejoining Oilers practice on Jan. 1 after starting to skate in mid-December. He isn't hurrying himself to get back on the game ice before he's healthy, however.
"You want to play as soon as possible, but at the end of the day, you've got to play when it's safe," McDavid told the team's website. "It's a little bit frustrating when you feel good and you want to play, but like I keep saying, it's for the best and it'll just give me extra time to heal."
Up until his injury, McDavid led NHL rookies with five goals and has seven assists in 13 games.