Jesse Puljujarvi’s development is critical to the future of this club, and confidence is growing every game that he is headed in the right direction.
Of course the Oil selected Puljujarvi 4th overall in the NHL draft after he slipped out of the top 3 where most had projected him to go. He arrived in Edmonton as a teenager with lots of potential and almost no English. The language barrier proved difficult enough that it clearly limited him with the coaching staff.
It's hard enough to earn the trust of the coach as a teenager. It’s doubly hard to do that if you can’t communicate effectively. While his fancy underlying stats were fantastic as a sheltered teenager, his standard counting stats were not. He picked up just 1-7-8 in 28 games and was trapped in the press box for another 20ish games beyond that (that’s an issue for another day).
As the youngest player in the AHL last year, he picked up 12-16-28 in 39 games with the Bakersfield Condors. There was some level of frustration with his AHL time as well, because we were hearing that his performances in games was outmatching his actual production. Still, for an 18 year old against professionals it was a decent start.
This season he was penciled onto the Oilers by management over the summer. The team shipped out Jordan Eberle probably assuming that the hulking Puljujarvi was going to step into that spot anyway. The gamble wasn’t a good one as the 6’4… winger wasn’t there yet and took in another 10 AHL games (1-4-5) before getting the call up.
One thing we’ve seen from Puljujarvi this season more than last is that he is using his speed and hands to carry the puck and take himself to the front of the net. What I love is that the big man isn’t doing fly-bys. He stops himself in front and is looking for rebounds. He has a variety of assets that are desirable in any hockey player. He is a physical specimen, he is fast, he has hands, and he can protect the puck well. His playmaking was a feature at the World Juniors but hasn’t shown up much yet in the NHL.
I wonder for him if that’s the next facet of his game to appear once it all starts to slow down for him. I want to stress again, he will be 19 all season long. His 20th birthday isn’t until May 7th.
Puljujarvi is averaging just 13:32 per game this season, and just 18 seconds a night on the PP. He has finally been added to the 2nd Unit, anchored by Nugent-Hopkins. His one-timer and ability to get to the front of the net are going to be assets for him and we should see a boost in his offense and time as a result. He should be able to average 15 minutes a night or more under these conditions.
Right now, Puljujarvi’s 5v5 Points per 60 is 4th among Oiler forwards at 2.31/60. That is virtually the same as Leon Draisaitl and Milan Lucic (Go Looch!). Yes, he’s playing with McDavid, but he’s also converting and that’s what matters. He shoots a ton and they’re all going in for him right now. His 5v5 Sh% is 14.6% and that’s likely going to drop, but that should hopefully be offset by the increase he ought to see in PP scoring.
Puljujarvi is on pace for 30 goals over 82 games (remember he wont play 82) and that’s without the PP. Hitting 20-25 goals is very achievable for him this season if he gets regular time on the man-advantage and continues to stick on the top line.
Points Back: 8
LINEUP
Larsson is back in the lineup tonight! Cammalleri is out and Walker is in per early reports.
Lucic McDavid Puljujarvi Maroon RNH Caggiula Khaira Draisaitl Strome Walker Letestu Kassian
Klefbom Benning Nurse Russell Davidson Larsson
Talbot
OILERS KEYS TO THE GAME
1) Larsson Back. Edmonton gets back one of their top defenders in Adam Larsson. The defensive defenseman is making his return after an upper body issue forced him onto the IR. It looks like Larsson will plug into the 3rd pair in his debut and the team can make a call after he gets his legs back under him. He was averaging 22:29 a night before the injury. Both he and Davidson are known for their physical play more than their puck moving. It will be interesting to see how that pair handles the Sharks forwards tonight.
2) LOOCH. Give it to Milan Lucic for having a solid year offensively as it is, but that game against the Wild was exactly what we want to see from the $6M forward. He abused Matt Dumba on the way to passing the puck over to Puljujarvi on a 2v1. In fact, he shrugged Dumba off and kept trucking like the defender wasn’t even trying to stop him. When Lucic is on his game he is a freight train that is impossible to stop. It might be like he’s on rail road tracks, but you still don’t want to be in the way. 3) Rivalry? It feels like it’s been forever since the Oilers played the Sharks. For two teams to have fought so hard against each other in the playoffs, it’s inconceivable that they wouldn’t meet until right before Christmas next. Especially so since they are in the same division. If Edmonton wasn’t so miserably low in the standings, this match would feel a lot more hyped up. Still, given what Kassian did to Couture last spring, maybe there’s still plenty of animosity between these clubs. I imagine we’ll find out pretty quick.
Puck drops tonight at 7PM Mountain Time on Sportsnet West. Game On! Follow me on Twitter @Archaeologuy