“Fail for Nail” rang through the streets of Edmonton during the 2011-12 NHL season as the Edmonton Oilers, for the sixth year in a row, were selected as lottery hopefuls rather than playoff contenders. Lottery balls fell their way, and a surefire Russian superstar playing for the Sarnia Sting of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) was ready to be drafted into an organization best known for housing dynasties during the 1980s. Nail Yakubov, the team’s third consecutive first-round draft pick, will join emerging stars Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent Hopkins and Jordan Eberle, to form the next generation of the Oilers offense. Fast-forward four years, and Yakubov set sail for St. Louis, making a symbolic resurgence of the ward’s fall from grace. Fortunately, the Oilers used assets from the Yakupov trade to draft future All-Star, Stuart Skinner.
Jakubov’s period with the Oilers
Yakubov’s time with the Oilers began with promise. In his rookie season, he scored 17 goals and 14 assists for 31 points in 48 games. 64 points per game (P/G) during his rookie season would be the highest of his career, with his second-best P/G coming in the 2014-15 season, when he was 0.41. That season, he scored a career-high 33 points (14-19-33), but in 81 games. The Oilers didn’t have a strong offensive punch during his four years with the organization, but his inability to produce with Nugent-Hopkins, Hall, Eberle, or even rookie Connor McDavid confused fans about his reason for being. stagnation of production and development after his freshman year.
throughout Yakubov’s career as an oiler, He scored just 50 goals and 61 assists for 111 points in 252 games. In those games, he had a plus/minus score of -88 and 102 penalty minutes. He has only passed the 30-point mark twice in four years, once in his rookie season. It was clear to everyone that a change of scenery was needed. NHL fans hoped the trade would be the jab Yakupov needed to reignite the scoring prowess he displayed in his early years. With its commercial value plummeting after three consecutive abysmal years, Bidder has moved forward to acquire.
Yakubov Trade Tree
On October 7, 2016, it was released Oil trader Yakubov to St. Louis Blues A conditional third-round pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, Zach Pochiro. The condition of the draft selection was that if Yakupov scored 15 goals in the 2016-17 season, he would become a second-round pick in the 2018 draft. He did not score 15 goals, voiding the selection requirements. Pochiro played the 2016-17 season between the American Hockey League (AHL) and ECHL affiliates, playing 46 games between the two leagues. At the end of the season, the Oilers did not retain his rights, which made him a free agent. The only significant piece in that trade was the aforementioned 2017 third-round pick. From a Blues perspective, taking a flyer about a former first-round pick to give a middle prospect and a third-round pick wasn’t much to give up, even if it didn’t work out. its end.
Related: 2012 Redraft: What If Edmonton Oilers Didn’t Take Yakupov Nail?
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The abandoned Blues ended up being the 82nd pick in the 2017 NHL Draft; However, the Oilers did not make the draft at that location. On Day 2 of the 2017 NHL Draft, with the 82nd pick in hand, the Oilers elected to move up, aggressively targeting the goaltender they loved in the third round. They bagged the 82nd and 126th picks for the 78th pick of the Arizona Coyotes, a hefty price to move up four spots in the third round. With shots 82 and 126, the Coyotes singled Cameron Crotty and Michael Carew. Karow will not be signed by the Coyotes, while Crotty signed a rookie contract on April 9, 2020. He is still with the Coyotes organization, playing for their AHL affiliate, the Tuscon Roadrunners. Crotty, like Karow, has not yet played a game in the NHL. With the 78th overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, using assets from the Yakupov trade, the Oilers selected from the Lethbridge Hurricanes of the Western Hockey League, Stuart Skinner.
Stuart Skinner, NHL All-Star
Around 2016, when the Yakupov trade happened, it was seen as a win for the Oilers to get an NHL-caliber player from the third-round pick they received. By 2023, the Oilers converted the trade into an NHL All-Star level player. Skinner became Oeters clerk After the struggles of Jack Campbell Starting in 2022-23. In 50 games this season, he has a record of 29 wins, 14 losses, and five losses in overtime/shootouts, and has a 2.75 goals against average (GAA) and a 0.913 save percentage (SV%). Those totals earned him his first All-Star nod at the 2023 NHL All-Star Game in Florida.
Skinner’s play during the 2023 NHL playoffs did not resemble that of an All-Star. However, the Calder Cup Final He is still young and has time to improve his consistency. During the post-season, he had a 3.68 GAA and 0.883 SV%, not great numbers from a great goaltender. Year after year, Oilers fans should expect improvement from their goaltender. At the very least, even if Skinner never gets All-Star status again, he should still develop into a consistent starting net guard.
The Oilers salvaged a botched first selection in Yakupov by selecting their future goaltender after a series of trades that included both snaps and forward. History doesn’t look fondly on the top five picks from the 2012 NHL Draft. With all the hype surrounding Yakupov, his inability to perform in the NHL remains as shocking as it is sad. He ended up finishing his NHL career with the Colorado Avalanche before signing to the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), where he remains. As for Skinner, despite a disappointing playoff performance, he should solve the Oilers’ goaltending woes during the McDavid era.