Ryan Nugent-Hopkins

At 31 years old, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has this physical status:

Playing career

While attending Burnaby North Secondary, Nugent-Hopkins played minor ice hockey for the Burnaby Winter Club in his hometown. He competed in the 2005 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with Burnaby and led his team to a quarter-final appearance and then a provincial championship later in the season. When he was first drafted first overall by the Burnaby Winter Club Bruins in the 2008 Western Hockey League (WHL) Bantam Draft by the Red Deer Rebels, he was the captain of the Burnaby Winter Club Bruins. He competed in the Western Canada Bantam Championships in 2007 and 2008. The Burnaby Winter Club Bruins won the gold medal in 2007 and the silver medal in 2008. In 2008, Nugent-Hopkins was named tournament MVP. Nugent-Hopkins was drafted and played midget hockey for the Vancouver NW Giants from 2008 to 2009. Nugent-Hopkins was named the Tournament MVP and landed a spot on the All-Star Team in 2008 during Mac's AAA midget hockey tournament. In recognition of his sportsmanship, leadership, and hockey abilities, Nugent-Hopkins was named BC Minor Hockey Player of the Year in 2008.

Nugent-Hopkins made his WHL debut with the Rebels as an underage player during the 2008–2009 WHL season, wearing #29. He appeared in five games, scoring two goals and adding four assists. Nugent-Hopkins appeared in 67 games during the 2009–2010 season, scoring 24 goals and adding 41 assists when wearing #9. He was named the WHL rookie of the year award. He was also a finalist for the CHL Rookie of the Year Award, but he was disqualified by Peter Puempel of the Peterborough Petes, but lost to Matt Puempel of the Peterborough Petes.

The International Scouting Service ranked Nugent-Hopkins sixth overall, the second highest WHL player after Vancouver Giants defenceman David Musil, in their pre-season rankings for the 2011 National Hockey League (NHL) Entry Draft. Nugent-Hopkins' E. J. McGuire, the NHL Central Scout Bureau's director, said, "He's got a natural talent and a knack for offense," while Cam Moon, the Rebels' play-by-play announcer, named him the best player the team has ever seen.

Nugent-Hopkins was chosen first overall in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft by the Edmonton Oilers on June 24, 2011. He signed to a three-year NHL entry level deal with the Oilers on July 2, 2011.

On October 9, he appeared in his first game for the Oilers in the team's first game of the 2011–12 season, a shootout win over the Pittsburgh Penguins. For the only Oilers tally in regulation, Nugent-Hopkins scored the game-tying goal with less than five minutes remaining against Brent Johnson. By sportswriters and broadcasters, he blocked two shots and was named the game's third star. He scored his first NHL hat trick against the Vancouver Canucks on October 15, 2011, defeating the Vancouver Canucks in a losing cause, setting a new NHL record for a first overall pick. He also set a new Oilers record for the first career hat trick in only in a handful of games, defeating Gord Sherven's record from 1984 by a margin of two games.

On November 2, 2011, Hopkins was named Rookie of the Month for October. Nugent-Hopkins was named November's NHL Rookie of the Month on December 1, 2011, granting him the highest accolade for the first two months of the year. After Evgeni Malkin's 2007 debut in 2007, he was only the second player to do so. Nugent-Hopkins had five assists against the Chicago Blackhawks on November 19, 2011, the first 18-year-old in NHL history to do so. He was also the fourth 18-year-old player to score five points in a single season game.

Nugent-Hopkins would have been playing in the all-star game if he had been healthy, according to the company. Despite missing 20 games in his first NHL season, Nugent-Hopkins tied Gabriel Landeskog for the most points by a rookie (Landeskog had 22 goals and 30 assists, while the Nugent-Hopkins had 18 goals and 34 assists).

Nugent-Hopkins was nominated for the Calder Memorial Trophy alongside Gabriel Landeskog of the Colorado Avalanche – the eventual champion – and Adam Henrique of the New Jersey Devils on April 23, 2012.

It was revealed that Nugent-Hopkins would require shoulder surgery in the offseason at the 2012-13 season. Nugent-Hopkins agreed to a seven-year contract with the Oilers worth $42 million with a $6 million per year cap. Nugent-Hopkins was chosen to play in the 2015 NHL All-Star game during the 2014-2015 season.

Nugent-Hopkins was hospitalized in the 2017-18 season, and it was expected to miss five to six weeks. He returned to the lineup in March, almost a month and a half after the initial injury. Nugent-Hopkins was turned into a left winger shortly after his return, just shy of finishing the 2018 season, to assist teammate Connor McDavid's line. Despite his line's popularity, the Oilers were unable to make the playoffs. He ended the season with 48 points in 62 games. Nugent-Hopkins was nominated for the King Clancy Memorial Trophy on April 23, 2018, which is given to the player who best exemplifies leadership skills and has given back to his families.

The 2018–19 season was Nugent-Hopkins' best-to-date, with career highs in goals (28) and assists (41), totaling 69 points in 82 games. Nonetheless, this was the beginning of the Oilers' second poor season, with both coach Todd McLellan and general manager Peter Chiarelli fired midway through the season. The team has been cut from the playoffs once more.

Nugent-Hopkins nearly tied for his highest game in 65 games in the 2019-20 season, but the COVID-19 pandemic prematurely ended it. Nugent-Hopkins, one of 31 skaters to be released in Toronto and Edmonton when the NHL returned to play in the 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs, was one of 31 skaters for the Oilers. The Oilers, the fifth-ranked team in the Western Conference at the time of the season's cancellation, faced the Chicago Blackhawks in a qualifying round, a team they had been destined to defeat. However, the team suffered, with players other than Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid, and Nugent-Hopkins missing in scoring, and the Blackhawks were eliminated 3–1 in the series. In four postseason games, Draisaitl scored 3 goals and 3 assists.

The NHL temporarily realigned its structure for the 2020-21 season, with all Canadian clubs playing in the North Division and interdivisional play suspended in light of pandemic restrictions on cross-border travel. Nugent-Hopkins and the Oilers had a fruitful season in this new format, and the Oilers advanced to the 2021 Stanley Cup playoffs in a series against the Winnipeg Jets. In the first round of the 2021 Stanley Cup playoffs, the Jets were surprisingly swept by the Jets, with Draisaitl having one goal and one assist in the four-game series. Following the conclusion of the season, Nugent-Hopkins decided against a free agency and signed an eight-year, $41 million contract extension with the Oilers.

The 2021–22 season in the Oilers organization saw more turmoil during the season, with coach Dave Tippett removing midseason after a good start fell off sharply and ended the Oilers' chances in a playoff position. Tippett was replaced by Jay Woodcroft, the former coach of the Oilers AHL affiliate Bakersfield Condors. Over the course of the season, Nugent-Hopkins scored 11 goals and 39 assists, most notable when Woodcroft paired him with Warren Foegele and Derek Ryan later this season. In the first round of the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs, the Oilers defeated the Los Angeles Kings and drew the Calgary Flames in the second round, the first playoff "Battle of Alberta" in 31 years. Nugent-Hopkins excelled himself in Game 4 of the series, scoring two goals, including the game-winner, to bring the Flames to a brink of elimination. For the first time in Nugent-Hopkins' career, the Oilers advanced to the Western Conference Final, but the Colorado Avalanche took the prize. With 6 goals and 8 assists in 16 games, he had a good season.

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