Why Edmonton Oilers signing Nail Yakupov is a good step -NHL Special
Edmonton Oilers might not have had much luck by signing on their past two top draft picks of 2010 and 2011, Taylor Hall and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins respectively, but hockey analysts do not know why, but they do have a feeling that this time around, things are
going to get heated up.
The Canadian, National Hockey League (NHL) franchise announced the signing of their third straight top draft pick, Nail Yakupov, to an entry-level deal on Monday, July 23, 2012, for a total of $2.775 million over the next three seasons.
What is special about the deal is that it has a total fixed worth of $2.775 million, but with the added on potential and signing bonuses, Yakupov could be raking in a cool $3.775 million each and every season for the next three years.
"We're very happy to sign Nail to a three-year contract," Edmonton general manager, Steve Tambellini, told the team's website Monday. "He's an extremely talented and passionate young man who we feel will be an integral part of our team for many years to
come."
Yakupov has been spending some time in the city of hockey after being the first Russian-born player to be selected first overall ever since Alex Ovechkin was picked up by Washington Capitals back in 2004.
Without a doubt, it was a great feeling for the Russian top draft pick of this year and hopefully, he will be able to live up to the high expectations of the Edmonton team.
The biggest issue with any prospect is deciding whether they are NHL-ready or not and when asked, Yakupov thinks that he is ready to get into the game right away.
"Why not?" Yakupov asked in return. "I think I'm ready for NHL. I want to try. I have whole summer to train and work with Edmonton. This is a great team, a young team, and they play good hockey. It'll be good playing with those players."
Looking at his stats with the Sarnia Sting in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) last season, 69 points, with 31 of those being goals, certainly does seem like a well rounded record and enough to really get him into the major league.
He faced some injuries during his minor league years including a back, knee and upper-body injury, but all that has made the player more ready to handle the stiffness of the North American major league.
Edmonton Oilers could be seeing a surge in performance next season with Yakupov on the squad but for now, all that is just expectation and nothing else.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own and in no way represent Bettor.com's official editorial policy.
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