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Yakupov goes first overall to the Oilers

yakupovgetty

James

The Edmonton Oilers went the safe route, selecting Nail Yakupov from the Sarnia String first overall in Friday’s NHL Entry Draft.

The Russian winger was the consensus top prospect among draft-watchers, though there was talk the Oilers could throw a changeup and select a defenseman like Ryan Murray.

Yakupov has been compared to another Russian star, Pavel Bure, for his speed and scoring ability. (For PHT’s draft profile, click here.)

The Oilers now find themselves with an abundance of top-six forwards. So now that we’ve stopped speculating about who they’ll pick first, we can start speculating where Sam Gagner will be traded.