Did the Edmonton Oilers make the worst 1st round draft pick ever
In 2012, the Edmonton Oilers drafted Nail Yakupov as the first overall pick with high expectations for the young player.
However, Yakupov's NHL career was short-lived and he played 350 NHL games, scoring 62 goals, 74 assists, and accumulating 136 points.
Did Edmonton Oilers make the worst draft pick in NHL history? Hurts to say it, but yeah, most probably
Despite being hyped by Scotty Bowman as the next Pavel Bure, Yakupov failed to meet expectations at all levels of professional hockey.
Even TSN incorrectly predicted him as the top prospect of the 2012 draft, leading many to be fooled about his true value.
Yakupov currently plays in the KHL but has struggled to perform, with his last thirty-point season in 2018-2019 with SKA St. Petersburg. In the 2022-2023 season with Avangard Omsk, he only scored 6 goals and 4 assists for a total of 10 points in 16 games.
Although this cannot be attributed to Peter Chiarelli, Steve Tambellini was responsible for Yakupov's drafting.
| POLL | ||
3 AOUT | 50 ANSWERS Did the Edmonton Oilers make the worst 1st round draft pick ever Was Nail Yakupov the worst 1st round draft pick ever? | ||
| Yes | 31 | 62 % |
| No | 19 | 38 % |
| List of polls | ||
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