Nail Yakupov poised for bounce back year with Edmonton Oilers

By Cory Buck | Sep 3, 2014

Mar 18, 2014; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Edmonton Oilers right wing Nail Yakupov (64) skates with the puck during the warmup period against the Nashville Predators at Rexall Place. Edmonton Oilers won 5-1. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports /

Nail Yakupov didn’t exactly have a dream year in his sophomore campaign with the Edmonton Oilers. After tallying a promising line of 17 goals and 14 assists in 48 games his rookie year, Yakupov managed just 11 goals and 13 assists in 63 games with a whopping -33 last season. However, the numbers don’t tell the full story as the Oilers were a tire fire last year and recent studies suggest Yakupov might have been the victim of bad luck as much as he was a second-year slump.

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David Staples at the Edmonton Journal examined the shooting percentages of all Edmonton skaters last season and found Yakupov to have some of the worst ‘puck luck’ on the team. So while many fans have clamored for Yakupov to be traded, they may want to exercise a bit of patience after reading this piece.

"[Yakupov] converted on 21 per cent of his totals shots as a rookie, but just 9 per cent last year. He also had a low rate of conversion on actual hard or dangerous shots on net from the slot, with just 13 per cent of his 85 hard or dangerous shots on net from the slot going in. It’s hard to imagine he’ll have such bad puck luck in 2014-15. He’s a good bet to score more, even if he doesn’t create many more scoring chances per game."

As a winger, Yakupov’s primary objective is to finish plays and score goals. He was on pace for nearly a 30-goal season in his lockout-shortened rookie year before bottoming out last year. If he can get back in the mid-20s or higher in goals, he’ll have not only rejuvenated his own career with the Oilers to this point, but he’ll push Edmonton that much closer toward a return to the playoffs.

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