Nugent-Hopkins Returns for Oilers: Will Babcock’s Prediction Ring True?

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Back in September, Mike Babcock said Ryan Nugent-Hopkins would be “a massive part of things” for the Edmonton Oilers. On Thursday night, the veteran forward finally gets the chance to prove him right.

Babcock confirmed Tuesday night — after the Oilers won a tight overtime contest against the Minnesota Wild — that Nugent-Hopkins will make his season debut when the Oilers host the reigning Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes at Rogers Place. The announcement comes as the Oilers are getting other key players back from injury, a welcome sight given the team was essentially missing an entire second line for much of the season. Babcock said the move will help the team’s centre depth and let him spread out minutes more.

Nugent-Hopkins has missed the entire season with a lower-body injury suffered in a preseason practice in September. The Oilers have thrived without him, sitting at 7-1-1, the NHL’s best record by points percentage. That doesn’t mean he wasn’t missed.

“He’s beyond smart, maybe the best man in the middle on the power play in the National Hockey League, and knows how to play with and without the puck. He’s a good leader and an important piece for us,” said Babcock. A Nugent-Hopkins return will give the Oilers options. And a power play that clicked on Tuesday will get even better.

Connor McDavid has 26 points in nine games, while Evan Bouchard (18), Leon Draisaitl (16) and Vasily Podkolzin (12) have carried much of the rest. Zach Hyman returned a couple of games ago, and scored a goal in his first game back. Put Nugent-Hopkins on that unit and the league’s historically most deadly man advantage group improves.

That’s not the only place he helps.

No other Oiler has more than five points, which is where Nugent-Hopkins could make a difference. The 2011 first overall pick had 56 points in 72 games last season and owns 804 career points in 1,031 games. He adds depth where the Oilers need it. He gives the Oilers a complete second line and lets Babcock match up against the other team’s best. McDavid and Draisaitl could see weaker competition and feast on the lighter matchups. Tuesday night against Minnesota was a good example of that.

Babock noted on Tuesday night, “Every once in a while, you need to get fed your lunch. And when that happens to you, you say, ‘What are we going to do to fix it?’” This was in response to how effective the Wild’s top line of Joel Eriksson Ek, Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy was against McDavid’s line.

Nugent-Hopkins Is A Difference-Maker

Babcock has been consistently high on his centre, calling him “beyond smart” and possibly the best man in the middle on the power play in the NHL. He also described Nugent-Hopkins as a good leader and said he wants him to play full out rather than cautiously alongside McDavid.

This hints that he’ll join the top-unit power play again and anchor the second line.

Thursday’s game pits two of the league’s top teams against each other and is a major early test in Babcock’s first year behind the bench. For Nugent-Hopkins, it’s the first look at whether Babcock’s expectations hold true.

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