By the time he returned McDavid had gone on a huge roll that


Not the Edmonton Oilers

canada goose outlet michigan Ryan Nugent HopkinsFunny how long it took Edmonton Oilers coach Todd McLellan to figure out that Ryan Nugent Hopkins might be his Edmonton version of Joe Pavelski. canada goose outlet michigan

canada goose outlet reviews Especially odd given it was McLellan himself who drew a comparison between the two back in the fall of 2015, barely two months into the coach tenure with Edmonton Oilers. When asked who the Nuge reminded him of, Canada Goose Parka McLellan replied: canada goose outlet reviews

canada goose outlet store near me Pavelski. Because he small, he competitive, he understands the game. You got remember that Joe Pavelski played four years at Wisconsin before he even got to the league. I think Joe didn develop at Waterloo of the USHL until he was 19; Nuge had already put in 132 games in the NHL at that point. Nuge is 22 years old, you guys. I think he has the brain canada goose uk black friday and the will Canada Goose Coats On Sale to do it. canada goose coats further McLellan point, Pavelski was already 22 before he made his NHL debut. He was 24 by the time McLellan took over the club in 2008, and immediately embarked on what has been a near unbroken (lockout season excluded) run of 50+ point seasons filling a number of roles: at centre, at wing, on both special teams. In McLellan first season Pavelski saw his ice time soar by five minutes a night, his points total take a 50% boost, and his faceoff duties surge by 150%. canada goose outlet store near me

canada goose vest outlet Pavelski did have the advantage of being right handed, which was especially useful on a team loaded with lefties. It allowed him and frequent sidekick Joe Thornton to each get a steady dose of strong side draws as the combination of Jumbo Joe and Little Joe became a thing. canada goose vest outlet

canada goose outlet toronto Years later in canada goose uk outlet Edmonton, it didn seem to occur to McLellan to try anything of the sort with his new handyman. He played canada goose uk shop RNH at centre, he played Connor McDavid Canada Goose Online at centre, and never the twain did meet. He played them on separate lines and separate powerplays. For 2.8 seasons the coach strategy seemed to be is the guy I trust most to be out there when Connor is on the bench. played 8 minutes as a duo at even strength in 2015 16. The following year that time somehow dropped, to 7 minutes, in a season both played all 82 games. And through the first 66 games of 2017 18, a further 8 minutes. At that point, 230 games into their time together as teammates, they had played just 23 combined 5v5 minutes together; just one minute for every ten games played by the Oilers over that span. The list of forwards who had seen more ice with McDavid than had Nuge included the likes of Iiro Pakarinen, Lauri Korpikoski, cheap canada goose uk and Matt Hendricks. Not exactly the Skill Brigade. canada goose outlet toronto

canada goose outlet store quebec Not that the idea hadn been raised elsewhere. Here the Cult of Hockey own David Staples back on the eve of training camp: canada goose outlet store quebec

canada goose womens outlet [B]efore the Oilers make any decision on RNH’s future, I’d love to see him play 500 even strength minutes this year on a line with McDavid or Draisaitl. Other Oilers attackers have had that choice role, with some thriving and some failing and some doing a bit of both. Before the final call is made on RNH’s future with the Oilers it’d be great to see how he canadian goose jacket does in such a role. What if he turns out to be the perfect winger for McDavid or Draisaitl? canada goose womens outlet

canada goose parka outlet uk https://www.canadagoosejacketsalesca.co.uk Others such as TSN Ryan Rishaug championed the cause on an ongoing basis. But whenever McLellan would stack his top six which was often it would always be Leon Draisaitl who got the spot on McDavid (right) wing. Nuge? Never, other canada goose outlet than a tiny bit of overlap on shift changes or at the end of penalty kills. Canada Goose online If the two lined up on the same line for two consecutive shifts at any point, I don remember it. canada goose parka outlet uk

canada goose discount uk Finally, sometime in the canada goose coats on sale third period of Game 67, the pairing of 93 and 97 hit the ice together. They played 4 minutes together down the stretch against New York Islanders, McDavid scoring the late equalizer in a game the Oil would go on to win in the cheap Canada Goose shootout. canada goose discount uk

canada goose outlet factory From then on, they were a thing. Of the final 13 games RNH played down the stretch (he missed a couple to injury), McDavid and Nugent Hopkins played 195 minutes together at evens fully 15 minutes per game. And they did well. In just over 200 minutes together overall, the Oilers outscored the bad guys by a collective 17 goals to 9. Almost all of this while playing with a bargain basement right canada goose black friday sale winger in Ty Rattie, who himself was recalled from the AHL after the trade deadline. canada goose outlet factory

canada goose outlet uk By then of course the season was so deep into garbage time that more than a few Oilers followers this one most definitely included were muttering if not hollering, stick with what ISN working? Surely this is the time to experiment? Finally, in freaking March, the Oilers did try out a few new wrinkles: with Ethan Bear, with Canada Goose Jackets Pontus Aberg, with Rattie, with Draisaitl centring his own line full time while RNH and McDavid went steady on another. canada goose outlet uk

canada goose outlet winnipeg address Not sure the team was any better or worse than the desultory pace they set pretty much all season long, but McDavid got hot and pulled away in the scoring race. Nugent Hopkins saw his own totals bubble to 24 24 48 in just 62 games. That matched his career high in goals, while his 0.77 points per game was his best since his exceptional rookie season. His +10 was a new career high as well. canada goose outlet winnipeg address

canada goose uk Much canada goose clearance sale of the damage was done during that canada goose store late run with McDavid. During the duo 13 full games together, RNH posted 7 8 15, +14. The Oilers as a club recorded a 7 4 2 mark in those games. canada goose uk

canada goose clothing uk He not the Pavelski he doesn shoot right and he not strong on the dot. That said, his seasonal percentage of 48.8% also represented a career best, as uk canada goose outlet he responded fairly well to the new faceoff rules that emphasized speed over strength. canada goose clothing uk

canada goose outlet edmonton He also not the perfect Pavelski in terms of health. In the seven years Nuge has been in the league, the original Pavelski has played 539 games and missed 1; while Nuge has played 457 and missed 83. That a full season worth of lost games, 20 of canada goose factory sale which came in 2017 18 when he suffered rib damage when drilled by Vegas Brayden canada goose clearance McNabb. canada goose outlet edmonton

canada goose factory outlet toronto location At the time of the injury RNH actually led the Oilers in goals with 16, as he was one of the club more consistent goal scorers all season long. By the time he returned McDavid had gone on a huge roll that ultimately landed the phenom in the 40 goal club. But Nuge himself likely would have exceeded 30 without the injury. canada goose factory outlet toronto location

canada goose outlet new york After slow playing him a couple more games at centre following his return from injury, McLellan finally made the move to put buy canada goose jacket cheap the two first overall draft picks together. Their immediate success may have changed the thinking of the organization after a season where RNH name was frequently mentioned as a man potentially on the move. But by the season ending media scrum, uk canada goose Peter Chiarelli essentially confirmed him as a member of his core group for 2018 19. Never say never, especially when Chairelli is involved, but it fair to say that Nuge smooth transition to left wing Canada Goose sale coupled with his proven abilities down the middle of the ice, make him a more attractive option than many/most of the options that might be available by trading him. canada goose outlet new york

canada goose jacket outlet sale That position has surely been further solidified in the just completed World Championships, where Nugent Hopkins and McDavid foimed two thirds of Canada first line in 10 out of 10 games. McDavid was in a class of his own as usual, but RNH was the one man who could sort of keep up, and who showed a persistent ability to find his Oiler teammate with. Both men scored 5 goals to co lead the team while finishing 1 2 in other major categories including points, shots, and (forward) ice time. The burgeoning chemistry between the two was obvious, even as the struggle to find a complementary second winger canada goose was one of Bill Peters most vexing issues. canada goose jacket outlet sale

canada goose outlet mississauga In Canada Goose Outlet Edmonton, Rattie might have buy canada goose jacket the inside track on that but is far from a sure thing. What does seem apparent at this distance is that Ryan Nugent Hopkins is one Oiler who can play and produce with the club top star. Best guess here is having finally been given the chance, he take the opportunity and run with it for a while. At minimum, his newly proven ability to play two forward positions along with that of Draisaitl gives Todd McLellan plenty of options and the ability to change up the look on any given night canada goose outlet mississauga.

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