Ryan Nugent-Hopkins Is So Overrated

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins Is So Overrated

The Edmonton Oilers are in shambles. Dave Tippett has been fired, the goaltending – overall defense is putrid, and nobody consistently contributes outside of McDavid – Draisaitl. At what point do we start to point the finger at Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. Are we just going to ignore the fact that he’s wildly overrated?

Today was the final straw for me. When people tell you who they are, believe them. I do believe Edmonton has a bit more juice to them after signing Evander Kane (who’s made a very positive impact on the ice thus far). New head coach Jay Woodcroft put together his first lineup card. Nugent-Hopkins now sits on the third line.

Oilers go with McDavid, Draisaitl and RNH down the middle.

Hyman-McDavid-Puljujarvi
Kane-Draisaitl-Yamamoto
Foegele-RNH-Ryan
Benson-McLeod-Shore

Nurse-Bouchard
Lagesson-Ceci
Niemelainen-Barrie

Smith

— Bob Stauffer (@Bob_Stauffer) February 11, 2022

The fact of the matter is, RNH deserves to be on that third line. The guy stinks and or is massively overrated. On the season, RNH is a +3 through 37 games notching six goals and 27 assists. The assist numbers seem great on the surface except when you forget about the part where RNH is basically falling his way into them with McDavid and Draisaitl.

If RNH played for another team, he would be viewed as a bust. There is just no way to justify redrafting RNH first overall in 2011. Gabriel Landeskog and Jonathan Huberdeau are just way better than him and both were taken immediately afterward.

The Oilers signed the eight year veteran to a monster contract extension this offseason worth $41 million over another eight seasons. It felt like a move to hang onto a former number one overall pick rather than face the sad reality that the guy just isn’t that good.

RNH might want to give McDavid a cut of his salary because he’s made him more money than he really deserves. His shooting percentage sits at a paltry 6.5%. The five-on-five Corsi and Fenwick numbers sit at 48 and 45.5 respectively. Just awful numbers however you slice it. We’re talking about a 0.5 goals per 60 mark for a guy getting paid a pretty penny. It’s not good enough.

Frankly, Evander Kane is making him look bad too. Kane has immediately come in and made an impact. His shot percentage right now sits at 33.3% which obviously won’t last but it shows you what a premier player should look like next to McDavid and Draisaitl. Kane is getting great looks and is firing shots on net while making plays.

It’s Time For The Golden Knights To Move On From Max Pacioretty

Nobody wants to hear it but maybe Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is the real bad guy in Edmonton. He’s not close to providing the real impact a number one overall pick should. In fact, I’d go as far as to say I’m not even sure he even has talent. What’s the difference between RNH and Alex Galchenyuk? I’m being dead serious. We sure there’s a big gap?