After 15 mostly unspectacular but always steady NHL seasons, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins remains an important piece of the puzzle for Edmonton Oilers as they attempt once more to take a run at the elusive Stanley Cup. Drafted No. 1 overall by the Oilers in 2011, the Burnaby, B.C., native remains Mr. Versatility. He can play any forward position. He kills penalties. Contributes on the power play. He’s responsible defensively and still can be productive on offence. He is, says new Oilers head coach Mike Babcock — Nugent-Hopkins’s eleventh coach in his NHL career — “going to be a massive part of things here.” “He’s beyond smart,” Babcock said. “Maybe the best man in the middle on the power play in the National Hockey League. And he knows how to play with and without the puck.” In recent years Nugent-Hopkins has centred the Oilers’ second line or played the wing with superstars Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Previous coaches have never settled on how to play McDavid and Draisaitl, so Nugent-Hopkins’s versatility has been even more important. “The problem is, if you play with Connor and you’re being careful all the time and you’re watching, then you don’t look like the player you are,” Babcock said of one of the problems playing with McDavid. “I don’t want him to play like that. I want him to play full out and get after it.” Nugent-Hopkins said he’s comfortable with either role and has been spending most of training camp centring a line with Zach Hyman and Isaac Howard. “We’ll see what works best,” Babcock said. “On the road it might be one way and at home, when we have last change, it might be a different way. The first five games might be one way and if we don’t like the way it looks it might be a little different way. “What we want to do is get to a point where we have a little consistency. … I don’t know the answer, but I’m going to work it out.” However he works it out, Nugent-Hopkins said every line will have to contribute for the team to be successful, no matter who he ends up playing with. “We definitely want to be able to be relied upon in big situations, playing against anybody,” he said. “We need to be able to produce, obviously, and play well with the puck and just kind of control it.” While playing under so many coaches, less than half of them lasting two seasons, Nugent-Hopkins learned to adapt as each came and went. “Every coach has their own way of doing things,” he said. “Sometimes the systems are the same, but the way they approach them are different so you have to get used to that. “I’m used to getting to know different coaches … but (Babcock) is definitely a faster pace. Everything’s just quick, it’s to the point. We love that, especially at, being older in this league you want things to be quick you want things to be clear. You don’t want the grey area and that’s what he’s great at.” By John Korobanik This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 23, 2026.
