A third place finish in the Calder trophy race after playing only 45 games, the gold medal winning goal at the 2016 World Hockey Championship, named captain of Team North America at the 2016 World Cup and topping it off by being named the youngest captain in NHL history.

That was 2016 for Connor McDavid, who will return to the World Hockey Championship for the second time in 2018.

The Richmond Hill, Ontario native found the net exactly once in Russia during the 2016 tournament, however in a fashion fitting the 21-year-old superstar, it was a beautiful cut in, flick of the wrist, top shelf goal that stood up as the winner in a 2-0 gold medal triumph over Finland.

"We won a gold medal in Russia and I have great memories from that," McDavid said after the regular season ended. "Those are times that you won't forget."

While he only lit the lamp once at the 2016 tournament, McDavid was a key contributor to the gold medal, picking up eight assists along with his title winning goal.

"Going to World Championships is not where you want to be playing in May," said McDavid. "But ultimately, it's so special to represent your country."

The format of the 2016 World Cup of Hockey prevented McDavid from playing for Team Canada and possibly getting to skate beside Sidney Crosby in a pairing of the current and future best players in the league.

Connor McDavid - Canada
Nicklas Backstrom & Connor McDavid

Instead, McDavid was named as part of Team North America, a grouping of 23-and-under players from Canada and the United States.  However, the 2015 number one overall pick was not just part of the team, he was named captain.

"On a team full of future NHL captains, we have a strong leadership group on Team North America," said Team North America head coach Todd McLellan. "In particular, these three players – Connor, Sean (Couturier) and Aaron (Ekblad) – have identified themselves in camp as key leaders for our team.”

Team North America would fail to advance to the medal round of the tournament, but McDavid would post a solid three assists over the three games in which they participated.  They were eliminated despite a 2-1 record, which included a thrilling OT victory over Sweden in their final game.

McLellan’s words about future captains turned out to be prophetic as the Oilers, the team he coaches, named McDavid the youngest captain in NHL history in October of 2016.

“I’m very humbled and honoured,” McDavid told reporters after the announcement. “The list of guys who have worn the C here in Edmonton is unbelievable.”

“This doesn’t feel overwhelming at all,” McDavid told reporters. “I just feel very normal about it. I’m very humbled to wear it. There are so many good leaders in this room. To be able to represent that, it’s definitely a good feeling.”

While 2016 was a great year in international hockey for McDavid, it wasn’t his first time finding success in a Canadian jersey.

McDavid scored three goals and added eight assists as Canada defeated Russia to win the 2015 World Junior Hockey Championship which was held in Toronto and Montreal.

"This means everything," McDavid said after the game. "That's the biggest win of my life so far and I'm sure it's going to remain that way at least for a while."

For his efforts, McDavid was also named to the tournament all-star team.

The victory was redemption for the at the time future Oilers captain, who made his tournament debut the season prior and as a 17-year-old was held to four points as Canada finished fourth after a 2-1 Bronze medal game loss at the hands of Russia in Malmo Sweden