1. Since Dec. 30 (the first “full Nelson” game), Nail Yakupov has recorded 8 goals and 12 assists in 35 games. Over a full season, that rate of production would result in about 19 goals and 28 assists. The Russian winger has been especially hot of late. In the past 6 games, he has 3 goals and 3 assists. Under Dallas Eakins, Yakupov tallied a measly 4 goals and 4 assists in 31 games.
2. So what’s the explanation for the sudden increase in production? Is it all because of Nelson? No doubt the new coach has had a positive impact on Yakupov, but something else happened right around the time Nelson took over the Oilers’ coaching duties. On Dec. 29, the Oilers acquired Derek Roy. Playing with a veteran center has done wonders for Yakupov. So the easiest explanation for Yakupov’s better play is a combination of Nelson and Roy’s influence.
3. So everything’s coming up Milhouse, right? Not exactly. Yakupov’s possession numbers have been worse since December 30. This season under Eakins, Yakupov’s CF% (Coris for percentage) at even strength was 48.9%. So far under Nelson, it’s 43.3%. There’s not an easy explanation for this drop, but part of the answer is that the entire team’s possession numbers have worsened–from 50.9% with Eakins to 46.6% with Nelson.
4. Yakupov will probably always be compared with Alex Galchenyuk. Yakupov and Galchenyuk were drafted first and third respectively in the 2012 NHL Draft. Galchenyuk has been the better player so far, but his career point totals don’t blow Yakupov’s out of the water. Right now, Galchenyuk has 1 more goal and 16 more assists than Yakupov. Now if you wanted to blame all of Yakupov’s problems on Eakins (which I’m not doing), you could point out that in NHL games not coached by Eakins, Yakupov has 25 goals and 26 assists in 88 games (compared to only 15 goals and 17 assists in 94 Eakins-coached games). And you could argue that Yakupov (at least offensively) would have been as good as Galchenyuk if he hadn’t been coached by Eakins. But I think that argument is too simplistic and doesn’t hold Yakupov responsible for his obvious deficiencies (especially defensively).
5. While the Oilers’ even strength CF% has deteriorated under Nelson, the power play has seen a spectacular improvement. Since Dec. 30, the Oilers are sixth in power play shot attempts per 60 minutes and fifth in power play goals. (Hopefully these stats are correct. I’ve only just started to use War on Ice as my go-to hockey stats site.)
6. To get a power play, a team must draw penalties. More opportunities on the power play is a good thing, and an overlooked skill is the ability to draw penalties. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has the team’s best penalty +/-, drawing 15 even strength minor penalties and taking only 5. The Oilers with the worst penalty +/- are Matt Hendricks and Andrew Ference, both at -9.
7. It’s been encouraging to see the Nugent-Hopkins and Jordan Eberle filling the score sheets with goals and assists. After the Oilers’ victory over the Flyers on Saturday night, Cult of Hockey‘s Bruce McCurdy shared this nugget: “Don’t look now, but in the last month (Feb 22-Mar 21) RNH and Eberle are in a two-way tie with each other for the most points in the NHL.”
8. Joey Laleggia, an Oilers’ draft pick who will probably sign with the team this spring, was nominated for the Hobey Baker Award, awarded to the top NCAA hockey player. We’ll probably see Laleggia in Bakersfield come the fall.
9. Today’s random hockey card:
Friday was the anniversary of Craig MacTavish‘s trade from the Oilers to the Rangers. On March 21, 1994, the current Oilers’ general manager was dealt for a young winger named Todd Marchant. It turned out to be a good trade for the Oilers. MacTavish was at the tail end of his career, while Marchant gave the Oilers nine years of solid hockey. (All hockey cards are from Jon’s personal collection.)
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
