Anton Slepyshev is starting to establish himself on the Edmonton Oilers as a young player who wants to be a difference maker. The Russian born winger has played either wing in the past, but as a right shot on this team he’s been primarily used in the 3RW slot. He’s appeared in just 24 games this year tallying 3-4-7 (a 24 point pace over 82 games), so he’s got a long way to go, but he’s turning heads nonetheless.

Part of a draft day gamble by MacTavish, Slepyshev arrived to the Oilers as an overager in the NHL entry draft. He had been passed over the year before despite NHL size and clear talent. At the time it was largely believed to be due to his Russian passport and the threat of wasting a pick on a player who may never come to North America.

Over-seas he played 4 season in the KHL, ending in 2014-2015 which was his best campaign for Ufa Salavat Yulayev going 58GP, 15-10-25. Although those totals are still relatively low, there was reason to believe that it wasn’t until the halfway mark of the season that his coach was playing in significant minutes. It’s common for KHL teams to restrict minutes for the kids to extreme levels.

Leaving the KHL to come to North America last year, Slepyshev played predominantly in the AHL registering 49 GP, 13-8-21. He also managed to get into 11 NHL games on the injury plagued Oilers where he picked up a single assist. This season with the Condors Slepyshev tallied 10 points in 9 games but has played the majority of the year with the Oil. The door really opened after Tyler Pitlick’s body failed him.

Of the qualities that have made Slepyshev stand out, I’d say it was his willingness to physically engage. He’s been most effective in the games when he’s arriving into the corners with authority. He has a lanky build but broad shoulders. He certainly looks bigger than the 187 pounds he’s listed at. The quality that might keep him around is the frequency he shoots the puck.

Getting shots off makes you a dangerous player, even when you aren’t scoring. On a line with Lucic, directing the puck towards the net is never a bad thing. Slepyshev is getting 9.15 shots per 60 minutes 5v5. That’s the 2nd highest among the Oiler forwards (only Pitlick’s was higher). If Slepyshev earns more ice time with his play then we should see his shot totals climb, and with it his goals. As a side note, his Goals per 60 is 4th among the forwards. So he’s a good person to keep an eye on as the season wears on and the Playoffs approach.

In terms of the future for this kid, I’d say there’s a decent chance for him to establish himself on the 3rd line. When the Oilers took him and Bogdan Yakimov late in the draft I was more excited for Big Yak, but time has shown that it was Slepyshev who was up for the grind. And at 22 he still has time to grow as a player. I doubt top 6 is in the cards, but a good 3rd liner is a strong possibility. That’s something the Oilers will need as they spend Cap dollars on the big dogs.

Zone starts place him in the offensive zone at the 3rd highest rate among Oiler forwards (35.3% OZFO), but he also gets the 4th highest percentage of defensive zone starts. It’s a bit of a mixed bag with Slepyshev in those regards. He is on the low side of the overall rank of forwards in terms of shot attempts as well. In a common storyline, Slepyshev has a 39.4% CF with Kris Russell and a 50.4% CF without him. So there’s an element of context we all need to look at.

Early returns on this young man’s NHL career are intriguing. If he can earn more ice over the last 30ish games then he might turn into a real asset when the games get rough in Spring.

LINEUP

Maroon McDavid Draisaitl
Pouliot RNH Eberle
Lucic Caggiula Slepyshev
Hendricks Letestu Kassian

Klefbom Larsson
Sekera Russell
Davidson Benning

Talbot
Brossoit

OILERS KEYS TO THE GAME

1) Russell Responds. Listen, Kris Russell is a deeply flawed defender. He struggles to defend the blueline and just as importantly he struggles to make effective passes up the ice in transition. These traits contribute greatly to his poor shot attempt numbers amongst other things. In the last game, all of the same things that happen every game continued to happen but this time Talbot didn’t bail him out. To say it “wasn’t his night” would be to suggest that night was fundamentally different than most nights, which it wasn’t. It’s probably more correct to say it wasn’t Talbot’s night. So Kris Russell needs to bounce back in the sense that he needs to actually start playing well. Treating the last game as a one-off is a dangerously naïve exercise, but it’s bound to happen. I just hope we can finally start to see the defender that the Oilers are considering extending at some point this year. So far, that player is just a figment of collective imagination.

2) Roman Reigns. One of the players who always flies under the radar is Roman Josi. While PK Subban (rightly) gets into a lot of headlines, it’s still Josi who plays the most TOI/G on the Predator blueline. It’s Josi who leads that group in shots on net. It’s Josi who still has the overall lead in points for that defense. The 26 year old Czech rearguard in the middle of what looks like will be a stellar career. He’s off of last year’s pace that saw him pick up 61 points, but he’s no slouch. He’s a career 6.7% shooter who is only at 4% this season so his goal totals are down despite shooting the puck more frequently. If the Oilers keep their eyes fixed on Subban then this guy is more than capable, and due, to break out.

3) Big Rig Slowin Down. Over this last couple weeks the Oilers have been winning but the contributions from Patrick Maroon have been slowing down considerably. Maroon has 2-1-3 in his last 10 games. In the last game he was eventually taken off of the McDavid line and it looked like that sparked a little bit in him. Playing with Connor McDavid is a huge blessing, but the expectation is that the points have to keep coming. I like Maroon a lot as a player. He’s dirt cheap, humongous, and has decent hands. Along with that, he leads the Oiler forwards in CF% and CF%Rel (54.5%, 4.9%). Maybe expecting him to keep scoring like a man possessed all year long was unrealistic, but I think he has more to give than this current stretch has offered.

Puck drops at 6PM Mountain Time on Sportsnet West. Game On!

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