Nugent-Hopkins healthy again, putting up big numbers for Oilers

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has a healthy hand to help deal with the chip that was on his shoulder heading into the season.

“Last year I wasn’t very happy with my production,” the Edmonton Oilers forward told NHL.com. “I know I also try to focus on other parts of my game and help out. At the same time, it helps the team if I’m producing. I’m trying to put in a conscious effort to be more aggressive and get to the inside a little bit more and bear down on not just shots or passes, but other plays when I can.”

So far things are working out.

Nugent-Hopkins has 15 points (five goals, 10 assists) in 14 games and can add to his total when the Oilers (6-5-3) visit the Dallas Stars (6-3-3) at American Airlines Center on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET; HULU, ESPN+, SN).

“Whenever you’re getting points and things like that, it definitely has a lot to do with the guys around you,” Nugent-Hopkins said. “That’s the No. 1 thing and I’m just trying to be a little more tenacious and aggressive this season.”

Those feelings stemmed from the frustration of last season, when his offense dropped off. Adding to his issues was a broken hand sustained in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final, a series the Oilers lost to the Florida Panthers in six games.

Nugent-Hopkins had 49 points (20 goals, 29 assists) in 79 games last season, a good-sized drop from the 67 points (18 goals, 49 assists) he had in 2023-24, and a massive drop from 2022-23, when he had an NHL career-high 104 points (37 goals, 67 assists).

He had 20 points (six goals, 14 assists) in 22 games in the playoffs last season, but the broken hand sustained blocking a shot in Game 2 limited his ability to shoot the puck or take face-offs. He had a goal and assist in the Final, both coming in a 5-4 overtime win in Game 4, tying the best-of-7 series 2-2.

“I was trying to stick-handle a little bit, but the worst case was to push it a little bit too much and reinjure something,” Nugent-Hopkins said. “That would delay things, so in the summer you have a chance to actually let it heal.

“I didn’t have surgery on my hand so that was good. I was probably able to grab a stick in July at some point, but to be able to grab a stick and shoot, that was different.”

Now in his 15th season, the 32-year-old played his 972nd game for Edmonton in a 3-2 overtime win against the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday, surpassing forward Ryan Smyth for second on the Oilers’ all-time list. Defenseman Kevin Lowe tops the list with 1,037 games for Edmonton, a number Nugent-Hopkins can pass by season’s end if he stays healthy.

Nugent-Hopkins was selected by Edmonton with the No. 1 pick in the 2011 NHL Draft and is in the fifth year of an eight-year, $41 million contract ($5.13 million average annual value) he signed June 29, 2021.

“Ryan has been so important to this team for many years and I’ve certainly realized how important he is since I’ve been here,” Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said. “He’s not a player that’s going to beat someone 1-on-1 with his speed and his size, he’s a very cerebral player who knows what’s going on around him. Not only does he know what the opposition is going to be doing, but he also knows what his teammates are going to do.”

And his teammates know what he is doing, especially with a fully healed hand and new brand of stick that have him shooting the puck as well as he ever has.

“I think he is shooting the puck more,” Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm said. “I think he looks confident, he looks healthy and ready to go. He’s been probably the brightest performer we’ve had this year and that’s great to see a guy at that age finding his game. He’s always been a nice Swiss Army Knife for us to have, but I think he’s taking it to a top level again this year.”

Nugent-Hopkins has always been more than just offense to the Oilers. He can play center or left wing, is part of the top power-play unit and kills penalties. He is usually on the ice whether Edmonton needs a goal late or is defending a lead at the end of a game.

“He’s playing great, he’s making plays doing his thing, doing his typical [Nugent-Hopkins] stuff,” Oilers captain Connor McDavid said. “It’s nothing too fancy, nothing too flashy, but he just gets it done time and time again on both sides of the puck, he’s been great.”

Nugent-Hopkins said he entered this season refreshed and refocused, having been able to put the disappointment of losing in the Final to Florida for a second consecutive season behind him.

He admits losing in the Final to the Panthers in seven games in 2024 was tougher to get over, which may have contributed to his offensive struggles last season.

“I think last year, the way we started, personally, I know I was feeling a little slow and dwelling on it a little bit,” Nugent-Hopkins said. “You try not to, but this year, we had gone through the same thing the year before, so we were able to put it behind us a little quicker and just go out and play. You have to be able to show up to go from the get-go, so maybe it was a little easier mentally to come into this season.”