Connor McDavid stands in the middle of the locker room.
The Edmonton Oilers captain㽶Ƶֱs voice rises as he emphatically calls on teammates to give more. His passionate, expletive-laden message 㽶Ƶֱ a side rarely, if ever, seen publicly from the superstar centre 㽶Ƶֱ reflects the level of urgency in his team㽶Ƶֱs Stanley Cup quest.
Edmonton has just lost Game 2 of the final to fall behind the Florida Panthers 2-0 in the title series.
㽶ƵֱNot (expletive) good enough,㽶Ƶֱ McDavid says in a tirade that includes 14 f-bombs in 45 seconds.
A camera was there to capture the moment 㽶Ƶֱ albeit one partially obstructed by an Oilers staff member holding up a black curtain 㽶Ƶֱ and plenty more across the NHL last season.
The six-part 㽶ƵֱFACEOFF: Inside the NHL㽶Ƶֱ docuseries debuts Friday, a behind-the-scenes sports showcase from Prime Video.
McDavid㽶Ƶֱs group would indeed 㽶Ƶֱdig in㽶Ƶֱ as he implored, battling back from a 3-0 deficit to force Game 7 in a memorable series with massive momentum swings, but ultimately fell short in a slugfest that ended in tears in the bowels of Florida㽶Ƶֱs Amerant Bank Arena last June.
㽶ƵֱIt㽶Ƶֱs so (expletive) hard,㽶Ƶֱ a member of the Oilers says in the raw, immediate aftermath before the cameras are ordered to leave following the gut-wrenching loss.
Unlike past NHL reality endeavours that largely focused on teams, this show aims to bring viewers closer to hockey㽶Ƶֱs stars on and off the ice than ever before.
McDavid and a pair of teammates, Leon Draisaitl and Zach Hyman, feature prominently. The same goes for Toronto Maple Leafs star William Nylander, Vancouver Canucks captain Quinn Hughes, Boston Bruins sniper David Pastrnak, Panthers winger Matthew Tkachuk and a host of other big names.
㽶ƵֱYou㽶Ƶֱre getting a series that, for the first time, probably has buy-in from everyone,㽶Ƶֱ Hyman said in a recent interview. 㽶ƵֱEverybody wants to open the doors and show you what㽶Ƶֱs under the hood, which has not really been done before.㽶Ƶֱ
The players have seen their episodes 㽶Ƶֱ an Amazon project in conjunction with Box to Box Films, the company behind a long list of all-access sports series, including Netflix㽶Ƶֱs 㽶ƵֱFormula 1: Drive to Survive㽶Ƶֱ 㽶Ƶֱ but Hyman doesn㽶Ƶֱt think he will ever watch the finale.
㽶ƵֱYou lived through it,㽶Ƶֱ he said. 㽶ƵֱIt㽶Ƶֱll be really interesting for fans to see an inside look into what it㽶Ƶֱs like to go through that journey and to ultimately fall just short.
㽶ƵֱPretty devastating 㽶Ƶֱ and the cameras have access to all of that.㽶Ƶֱ
NHL players have historically guarded their privacy, but Hyman said the goal was to show the personalities and life at home in an effort to entertain established fans and attract new ones.
㽶ƵֱI hope that for newcomers to the sport, they㽶Ƶֱll have an appreciation for how difficult it is to win a Stanley Cup,㽶Ƶֱ Hyman said. 㽶ƵֱHow guys react with their team, how teammates react on the bench, different elements that are really interesting. Hopefully it encourages new people to come in and to actually watch this upcoming season.
㽶ƵֱAnd then for hockey fans, it gives you another layer to understand what㽶Ƶֱs really happening behind the scenes and appreciate the game even more.㽶Ƶֱ
Hughes said his only worry about the series, which came together quickly following February㽶Ƶֱs NHL all-star game, was it being a distraction for teammates.
Those concerns put to rest, he was all-in.
㽶ƵֱWhen I heard the other guys that were doing, it㽶Ƶֱs like, 㽶ƵֱHow am I going to say no?㽶Ƶֱ㽶Ƶֱ said Hughes, whose episode is shared with Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog and New York Rangers counterpart Jacob Trouba. 㽶ƵֱIt㽶Ƶֱs cool to put yourself out there and try different things.㽶Ƶֱ
Nashville Predators forward Filip Forsberg said he never watched F1 racing until 㽶ƵֱDrive to Survive.㽶Ƶֱ Now hooked, he expects the NHL㽶Ƶֱs plunge will attract similar uninitiated audiences.
㽶ƵֱWe live a phenomenal life, don㽶Ƶֱt get me wrong,㽶Ƶֱ said Forsberg, who shared his episode with Vegas Golden Knights centre Jack Eichel. 㽶ƵֱBut there㽶Ƶֱs also a big grind.㽶Ƶֱ
Hyman said learning about athletes away from their crafts has similarly drawn him to other all-access series.
㽶ƵֱYou get to see who people really are,㽶Ƶֱ he said. 㽶ƵֱIt may not be the whole picture 㽶Ƶֱ you may be getting a version of that person 㽶Ƶֱ but at least you get a little bit more.㽶Ƶֱ
Hyman added that while the series zeroes in on individuals, hockey㽶Ƶֱs team aspect plays a prominent role.
㽶ƵֱA lot of it㽶Ƶֱs focused on (McDavid),㽶Ƶֱ he said of the two episodes featuring Edmonton. 㽶ƵֱYou㽶Ƶֱre watching his journey through the playoffs, but it㽶Ƶֱs ultimately our team㽶Ƶֱs journey.㽶Ƶֱ
Including those electric, painful and soul-revealing moments in the final.
㽶ƵֱThere was no holding back,㽶Ƶֱ Hyman said. 㽶ƵֱYou guys are going to see what it was like post-Game 7, what it was like during different parts of the series. As a fan, it㽶Ƶֱs a roller-coaster. As a player, when you㽶Ƶֱre in it, it㽶Ƶֱs emotionally a difficult journey.
㽶ƵֱTo come up short was really hard.㽶Ƶֱ
Viewers are poised to get a front-row seat.