No. 1 pick Yakupov will get another shot ... but he shouldn't
After five years in the NHL, it's time to acknowledge Nail Yakupov for what he is and quit awarding him opportunities in search of an untapped ceiling.
An extremely weak 2017 free-agent class has again shone a light on him. With very few available offensive difference-makers, Yakupov's name recognition has undoubtedly drawn the attention of teams looking to bolster their scoring with the hope this is the year he finally reaches his potential.
With the Edmonton Oilers giving up on their 2012 No. 1 overall selection after just four seasons, Yakupov went on to post just nine points in 40 games with the St. Louis Blues over the course of the 2016-17 campaign.
His career totals now sit at 53 goals, 67 assists, and 120 points in 292 games.
While many NHL players have had prolonged careers having posted much lower numbers, the statistics through Yakupov's first five NHL seasons are doing just enough to keep afloat his perceived promise as a No. 1 draft selection. Last season was a bottoming-out campaign for a player who had a career single-season-best total of 33 points in 81 games back in 2014-15.
The Blues gave Yakupov a career-low 10:39 of ice time per game last season, dropping his career rate to just 14:09. He has a career Corsi For percentage of 46.8 and an on-ice team shooting percentage of just 7.4 at 5-on-5. He has started 58.7 percent of shifts over his career in the offensive zone, but he and his linemates continuously get driven back to the defensive end where he is a replacement-level player.
Yakupov's inability to succeed on offense has consistently brought attention to his ineffectiveness on defense. He hasn't been able to help out at either end of the rink throughout his career, removing him from consideration for both top- and bottom-six roles.
But Yakupov's story is not new. After all, there have been a slew of other high draft picks who were awarded opportunity after opportunity - by several different NHL teams - yet they could never live up to their hype.
| Player | Draft Pos. | Career GP | Career Points | Teams |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nikita Filatov | No. 6 | 53 | 14 | 2 |
| Peter Mueller | No. 8 | 297 | 160 | 3 |
| Jack Skille | No. 7 | 368 | 84 | 5 |
| Patrik Stefan | No. 1 | 455 | 188 | 2 |
| Alexandre Daigle | No. 1 | 616 | 327 | 6 |
Each of the above players had their own reasons and unique situations leading to their disappointments, but each one was continuously given "one last shot." No two NHL players are alike, but this list of players - each one having a high profile - can serve as a warning sign for Yakupov and others like him who'll follow.
The high draft selection will always serve as a bargaining chip for Yakupov's camp in contract negotiations, but they're meetings NHL teams need to stop making.