Yakupov was on pace for 53 pts as a rookie. So what happened?

[Ol' Jase]

He didn't care enough to put the work in to be a long-term NHL player.

That is literally the only right answer.

 

[rboomercat90]

According to Yakupov, it was the coaches fault. Did he play anywhere after he turned pro where the quote “maybe coach doesn’t like me” didn’t eventually surface after the healthy scratches started piling up? We heard that from him at every NHL stop and even when he was cut from the Russian National team. He wasn’t smart enough to figure out how to play a structured game and or he was just uncoachable.

 

[rboomercat90]

In hindsight, isn't this whole draft kinda bad? Like if Edmonton drafted Ryan Murray instead, it would not have made any real difference to the team

Nope, that was definitely the year to trade down and it was talked about too. The Oilers made a lot of mistakes in that era. The owner getting involved in that draft was a low point.

 

[Mav3rick07]

I remember hearing on Oilers radio how Yakupov only wanted to work on things in practice that he was already good at like his shot. He was too stubborn and unwilling to work on other areas of his game.

 

[Artorius Horus T]

What you guys are thinking of comparing Podz to Yak?

I think Podkolzin is the opposite of Yakupov; doesn't have skill required to be 1st line player
but works hard and is smart player.

Will be one of the best 3rd liners in the NHL in few years.

 

[joestevens29]

It's funny both Puljujarvi and Yakupov had the same complaints from teammates. The skill guys didn't want to play with them as the two young guys were just lost out there.

One worked on his game and is now an everyday top 6 for us. The other did not and is in the KHL bouncing around

 

[ManofSteel55]

Didn't pick up the points of the game to make him a good two way player and the offense never kicked in after coaching ruined his confidence. He couldn't be trusted to produce more than he cost the team defensively.

 

[Cup or Bust]

He scored 11 goals and 14 points in the last 11 games of his rookie season while the Oilers plummeted down the the standings. The rest of his rookie season he was as bad as the rest of his NHL career. His rookie season really wasn't good at all.

 

[Big McLargehuge]

Every complaint that people have had about Yakupov just not being that good has been pretty much validated by his thoroughly pedestrian KHL stats.

Of course the Oilers deserve some blame for this...but I don't think this is a situation where you could have plugged Yakupov on Sidney Crosby's line and gotten too terribly different of results. He just wasn't and isn't that good of a player, he just peaked young....and I do mean that. Yakupov had 18 points in 20 KHL games right after being drafted during the lockout heading into his statistically decent rookie campaign with the Oilers. Fast forward nearly a decade and he had 26 points in 43 KHL games this season and couldn't crack his team's top 10 playoff scorers.

He felt like Nikolay Zherdev Part II, except for the fact that half a dozen other names had entered the conversation as the top prospect heading into the 2003 draft letting Zherdev fall into the shadows of Staal/Fleury/etc on a young franchise with little national presence. The 2012 Draft just stunk and the spotlight remained on Yakupov and Edmonton...but even that feels far too kind to Yakupov. Zherdev, for all his flaws, still topped 50 points 3 times in his relatively brief NHL career. The last time Yakupov has so much as flirted with 40 points in a season anywhere is that rookie season split between Nizhnekamsk and Edmonton. The comparison really isn't a great one, Zherdev's issues were mostly attitude-related and he'd probably have stuck in the NHL with a better attitude/work ethic, but it does go to show how draft class can play into a narrative a bit. Nobody was talking about Zherdev years after the fact because there was no good reason to dwell on a 4th overall pick that didn't quite pan out. Yakupov...well 1st overall picks don't get the luxury of being forgotten.

 

[oXo Cube]

That he entered the worst development nightmare in hockey at it's absolute lowest point didn't help, but Nail Yakupov just didn't have any NHL quality skills. He wasn't big enough, fast enough, or smart enough to hang with the pros. Even his fabled shot was fiction, no accuracy on it at all.

What's really interesting about it is I think this was an open secret amongst professional hockey personnel. Even the Oilers were going to pass on Nail and take Ryan Murray before the owner directly intervened and overruled the scouts at the last minute. I wonder a lot about just how far down the draft Yakupov might have fallen if that hadn't happened.

 

[Guttersniped]

His SH% regressed to normal.

All Strengths 17 goals 81 shots 20.99%

5v5 10 goals 52 shots 19.23%
Power Play 6 goals 26 shots 23.03%
(plus an empty net goal)

I feel like there should be a permanent post up top just to make these threads stop popping up but it reality it wouldn’t stop them.

 

[SUX2BU]

 

[SwivelSchwartz]

He was constantly being chased by bees. Never knew where to but would go fast

 

[JohanFranzenstein]

*insert Dallas Eakins picture*

 

[WarriorofTime]

He lost all confidence and just didn't have a great hockey IQ. What's pretty wild is his first season in the KHL, he played for St. Petersburg and looked like he'd at least have a solid career over there and now he's not even that good in that League in what should be his prime. Wasn't even on the shortlist for the ROC roster.

 

[WarriorofTime]

That he entered the worst development nightmare in hockey at it's absolute lowest point didn't help, but Nail Yakupov just didn't have any NHL quality skills. He wasn't big enough, fast enough, or smart enough to hang with the pros. Even his fabled shot was fiction, no accuracy on it at all.

What's really interesting about it is I think this was an open secret amongst professional hockey personnel. Even the Oilers were going to pass on Nail and take Ryan Murray before the owner directly intervened and overruled the scouts at the last minute. I wonder a lot about just how far down the draft Yakupov might have fallen if that hadn't happened.

He's fast and can shoot, but doesn't know what to do with either of those tools. Perfect recipe to tear up the OHL but not the professional ranks (including the KHL).

 

[Snipes45]

I remember hearing on Oilers radio how Yakupov only wanted to work on things in practice that he was already good at like his shot. He was too stubborn and unwilling to work on other areas of his game.

That was Jason Gregor. He said he would watch him and Yakupov only liked working on his shot and wouldn't work on anything else after.

 

[ZenOil]

I think this hit scrambled his brains and might have contributed to him not meeting his potential. It's a very violent blow.

 

[oXo Cube]

He's fast and can shoot, but doesn't know what to do with either of those tools. Perfect recipe to tear up the OHL but not the professional ranks (including the KHL).

This is true except for relative to NHL players he wasn't fast(not slow though either) and couldn't shoot.

 

[1specter]

I always thought that Yak would maybe improve in the KHL and come back one day to be a decent middle six guy, but he's a pedestrian player even in the KHL. Insane for a first overall to bust like this

 

[North Cole]

*insert Dallas Eakins picture*

Careful, he hears everything.

 

[sepHF]

He had a decent little run while getting carried by Taylor Hall, that's about it.

Confidence is fickle, Yakupov is a brain dead hockey player

 

[WATTAGE4451]

If you ever watched him play, he was the most comically clueless player on the ice. He had the worst brains on an nhl rink ive ever seen

 

[BenningHurtsMySoul]

Apparently he was a complete asshat during the draft interviews.

Burke said he was insulted when the Leafs interviewed him holding the 5th pick and one of their scouts almost took him outside.

 

[96]

Apparently he was a complete asshat during the draft interviews.

Burke said he was insulted when the Leafs interviewed him holding the 5th pick and one of their scouts almost took him outside.

Did you just get youtube in vancouver?