As I was listening to the Canucks/Oilers post game the other night and reading the fallout that was Oilers twitter talk, I came across some lovely gems. Particularly when it came to struggling Edmonton forward Nail Yakupov.
It was everything from bench him, to trade him, to send him back to Russia. Then there was the more statistical based analysis calling him the worst defensive forward in the league, a bust, and a for sure trade candidate. The latter has been heavily stressed both in social media and in major media outlets for what feels like the better part of two years now.
Yakupov is struggling. No question. Just take a look at his adjusted possession rates.
I also agree with the sentiment of Domenic Galamini of losing some faith in the prolific forward who once scored over 100 points with the Sarnia Sting of the OHL. He isn't living up to the hype of a number 1 overall.
But that begs the question for me: Who is at fault for that?
I recall a few months ago while listening to NHL Network Radio that Mick Kern and Mike Ross (I believe it was Ross) were discussing what player you would start a franchise with. After a slew of emails and phone calls there were a lot of Stamkos votes, a lot of Toews, Subban, Karlsson, Doughty, Crosby...even a few Kopitars tossed in there.
The one name that wasn't coming up frequently was Alex Ovechkin.
It seems as though people have soured on Ovechkin to a degree over the last three years. Maybe it has to do with his horrid plus-minus rating and the notion that he can't play a lick of defense. Maybe it's because Washington has had powerful and promising teams in the past which failed to make a postseason mark.
Either way, I couldn't believe it when so few people called in to say Alex Ovechkin. He is arguably the most prolific and talented goal scorer in the world right now. Forget about the defense and the accomplishments, the dude can straight up put pucks in the net.
With that being said some people can't overlook those things.
Adjudged to be a lesser than the aforementioned because he isn't a complete player. I suppose the argument has merit overall, but how much are we focused on this "Complete" player thing these days?
Pouring through the twitter reaction and opinion of Oilers fans, you'd think that Nail Yakupov was the purveyor of some gross misconduct on them and their families.
The young Russian has done a touchy song and dance though, saying he won't play defense, backtracking and saying he will work harder in his own end. He hasn't exactly made life easy for himself that's for sure. Overall though he's still a very good hockey player who is going to have a great career. Will it be with Edmonton? My gut says no.
Back to the point at hand though, are we too focused on this trend of a complete player? After all, not everyone is capable of playing a full 200-foot game as efficiently as a Jonathan Toews or Anze Kopitar. On the flip side, there are players who aren't as efficient at scoring goals like an Alex Ovechkin or Patrick Kane. So why do the Kanes, Ovechkins, and Yakupovs of the world get all the hate? Well, because we expect them to be more than they are.
The Los Angeles Kings fanbase have been a bit of a spoiled. Anze Kopitar is a complete player, and arguably one of the most complete players in the game. They have a system that really doesn't support high scorers. They also have a media market that is incredibly cushy compared to other markets like Edmonton, Montreal, or any of your major east coast cities. For these reasons the Kings fans have become accustomed to just taking what you get out of a player.
Example: Mike Richards and Jeff Carter.
Chased out of Philly by a smothering media group, pretty heavily criticized by fans for every cold streak, and continually disappointed when the team fell short of expectations. The boo birds can still be heard at Wells Fargo Center when Jeff Carter comes into town and happens to have the puck on his stick.
But in Los Angeles it hasn't been the same. The team has been winning but both, Mike Richards in particular have had their share of struggles. Cold streaks have seen Carter lapse to some degree, and Mike Richards is definitely not the same player he was in his Philly days.
And ultimately that seems okay with Kings fans. Yes you'll hear the trade rumors about Richards and the grumbling about his contract, but overall people have been pretty pleased with No. 10 this year. It isn't about being the complete player, it's about working hard and getting a W. Maybe the system has limited his offensive output or maybe he just doesn't have the same level as he did in Philly. Either way, everything has kind of settled in for the two former Flyers.
Meanwhile up in Edmonton, a 21-year old predicted superstar is struggling to break double digit goals and keep his plus-minus in the black. Is it system? Just as Richards and Carter needed a change of scenery and locale, maybe Yakupov's worst enemy isn't his game but rather the expectation of him being something he's not.
People focus in on aspects players are lacking far too easily these days. It is correct to say that Ovechkin isn't a good defensive player or penalty killer. Ya know what, that's fine. Because if you stop thinking about that and focus on what he DOES do, he's pretty damn good at it. I don't think I've seen a player in this league yet with quite the goal scoring prowess. Stamkos comes close, but he still isn't Ovie.
However, these are all different players. Ovie is not Crosby, Crosby is not Stamkos, Stamkos is not Tavares, Tavares is not Toews, and so on and so forth.
Who is Anze Kopitar? He's his own player. He'll put up 80 points, finish a plus player, and work hard in all situations. If you are expecting 100 points you are setting yourself up for disappointment.
Who is Nail Yakupov? Is he a complete player ala Toews? No. He is his own player.
It's easy to be excited when you isolate the young Russian at times during the game. He can flat play. It was also easy to be excited when you read
what scouts said about the kid before his selection. It was easy to be excited when you heard scouts comparing him to players like Ilya Kovalchuk and Pavel Datsyuk. It's by these devices that we as fans have set ourselves up for disappointment.
Yakupov has been grossly mishandled in many ways by the Oilers staff and the Edmonton Media. As much as we like analytics these days, myself included, Yakupov has been put in a position to fail since his draft date. He has been asked to play a different style game by both fans and coaches. His confidence has almost certainly taken a knock, as the style of game that saw him rise to prominence in Sarnia is seemingly no longer appreciated by fans and media members. Coaches and fans are asking for more, or something different. They are asking him to be something he is not. Then when he fails at playing a game he is not comfortable with you hear the trade rumors fire up. How is he to succeed with that sort of environment?
When Trevor Lewis misses a clean breakaway off a turnover he caused through determination and hard work, I am rarely mad. When he puts up 20 points on the season, I can't say I'm elated or disappointed. Lewis is going to be the player he is going to be, and it's about appreciating what he brings to the table as is. He won't score you buckets of goals, but he skates hard, plays hard, and that's his thing. If Kopitar doesn't score 80 points I'm not upset. It's about appreciation for what that player CAN do, and not what they SHOULD do.
Maybe it's because of the No. 1 overall tag, but people expect Yakupov to be Crosby and that's simply not fair.
As far as the "Complete" player goes, there are so few of them out there. Maybe we toss that term around too much and lessen the value of it. Being good at every aspect of the game is incredible, and not something everyone can do. If you have one of those "Complete" players on your team, be happy. If you don't, then realize it's not at all a common thing to have.
I don't know when and where the Yakupov saga will end. I do, however, hope it ends soon for the sake of the talented Russian winger. At age 21 he still has too much time left for people to be writing him off already. My gut is telling me that this ends somewhere on a small market team on the rise though. Vegas perhaps? Seattle? Wouldn't that be a storyline.
Maybe he stays put after all. Keep those Yakupov jerseys in the closet and off the ice for now Edmonton fans. Come on, you aren't Toronto.
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