WHAT ABOUT NUGE?
7 years ago
As prone as many people around here are to rushing to judgment, and we are, it figures that Ryan Nugent-Hopkins would respond to some nagging angst about his play with easily his best game of this young season in the Edmonton Oilers 4-1 win over the Washington Capitals at Rogers Place Wednesday.
After being decidedly underwhelming in his first six games of the schedule, a stretch that produced just a couple of assists and more than a few struggles in the face-off circles, Nugent Hopkins made an appearance against the Capitals, setting up a pair of goals by Benoit Pouliot and digging in like a demon on the dot as the Oilers improved to 6-1. That’s right, 6-1.
We should, of course, know better than to jump to conclusions about anything based on just a half-dozen games, but that’s a favourite pastime in these parts. That said, Nugent-Hopkins’ overall game hadn’t been good enough until last night – he was 63 per cent in the circles (10-6) after coming in at just 39 per cent. He doubled his offensive output, which now sits at 0-4-4.
I understand the consternation. If Nugent-Hopkins isn’t producing points and isn’t getting the job done on face-offs, which is a work in progress, what is he doing? He’s not a shut-down guy. He’s damn sure not a big banger. He’s not a player who drives his line the way Taylor Hall did or Connor McDavid does. So, when he’s not doing what he did last night, questions arise. Fair enough.
WHAT YOU SEE IS WHAT YOU GET
Opinions about Nugent-Hopkins vary greatly. It all depends on what you expect of him. He was, after all, the top centre here until McDavid arrived. He got the same big tickets Hall and Jordan Eberle got coming out of their entry level contracts. Perhaps your expectation was that he’d develop into a 75-point player after he put up 52 points in just 62 games as a rookie in 2011-12.
Maybe you overshot. I know I did. I had him pegged as a perennial 65-point guy after his first season. He’s yet to get there, with his high being 56 points, which he’s accomplished twice. Injuries have played into that. He’s been a .70 PPG player so far, which bumps him close to the 60-point mark in a full season.
That’s still pretty good in my books, even if that’s not what a lot of us had him projected to be. Nugent-Hopkins needs to continue to work at improving on face-offs. The way I see it, RNH is a solid – not sensational — second-line centre, even if he didn’t look like it through the first six games. If you look at what RNH is instead of what he’s not — the dynamic offensive force McDavid is — that’s not a player you give up on.
With 0-4-4 after last night, RNH is off to the second-slowest start of his NHL career through seven games. He was 5-2-7 in 2011-12, 0-5-5 in 2012-13, 4-2-6 in 2013-14, 3-2-5 in 2014-15 and 0-2-2 last season. Given that McDavid will continue to draw the more difficult match-up from opposing coaches, I won’t be surprised if RNH hits the 60-point mark this season despite this so-so start, if he stays healthy. Let’s wait and see beyond seven games, as much as we’re reluctant to do that.
WHILE I’M AT IT
How many times have we seen past editions of the team buckle after a quick-strike goal like Alex Ovechkin had nine seconds into the third period? Too many times, that’s how many. Instead, Patrick Maroon restored a two-goal lead last night when he made it 3-1 at 1:25. When opposing teams talk about this edition of the Oilers being a different animal, push-back like that is one of the things they’re talking about. The 4-1 goal by Milan Lucic on a deflection is the kind of goal the Oilers have too often lacked since a young Ryan Smyth used to refuse to budge when he was getting the snot beat out of him in front of the net. It’s the net-front presence we’ve long talked about. The difference, of course, is that Lucic is tough as nails and mean as hell, as opposed to just fearless like Smyth was. How many NHL D-men are going to move Lucic out of the way when he sets up? In what I consider their two toughest tests so far this young season – those measuring stick games we like to talk about – the Oilers have outscored the St. Louis Blues and the Capitals by a combined 7-2. They’ve allowed just four goals in the four straight wins they’ve recorded since struggling mightily in that 6-2 loss to Buffalo Oct. 16. I thought Jesse Puljujarvi had his best game last night. He was quicker on the puck, had three shots on goal and picked up his first assist on Maroon’s goal in 12:13 of playing time.
Listen to Robin Brownlee Wednesdays and Thursdays from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. on the Jason Gregor Show on TEAM 1260.
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