Tonight, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins will become the first Edmonton Oiler to play his first 1000 NHL games with the Oilers. Next season, he will pass Kevin Lowe for the most games played in Oilers history.

Lowe played 966 games with the Oilers before joining the New York Rangers in 1992/1993. He won his 6th Stanley Cup with the Rangers in 1994 and then returned to Edmonton and played 64 games in 1997 and seven in 1998 before retiring. RNH has already surpassed Lowe’s record of 966 consecutive games as an Oiler, and tonight he will join Lowe as the only two players to play 1000 games. RNH will pass Lowe’s franchise mark of 1037 games early next season, but tonight he will be honoured with the Silver Stick, among other gifts, for playing his 1000th NHL game.

I sense this is a big deal for Oilers fans, young and old. Nugent-Hopkins is one of the most beloved Oilers of all time. He was never the best player on the team, but he’s been incredibly consistent and his offensive skills are likely a bit underrated because he plays with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Those who are superstars, and while RNH isn’t a superstar he’s a really good player.

He is the 417th player in NHL history to play 1000 games. He’s currently 208th all-time in scoring with 782 games and seems destined to reach 1000 career points. Leon Draisaitl was the 103rd player to do it early this season, and RNH will likely he the 112th-115th depending on how productive he and some other active players are over the coming seasons. RNH has had an amazing career, and he’s only 32 and likely has at least six more seasons to play.

Tonight’s game will be a celebration of his accomplishments with the Oilers, but it also represents something bigger. Loyalty, resiliency and perseverance. The Oilers and RNH have been equally loyal to one another. RNH was handed a $6m contract for seven seasons after only two years in the NHL and Nugent-Hopkins repaid them by signing his third contract at what has become a great value contract at $5.125m for eight years. He is a great example of why not taking a major payday can benefit the team and player. RNH has already made over $70m and has another three years remaining on his contract, but he has never been looked at negatively by fans because of his AAV. It isn’t always fair to judge a player solely on their salary, but many do, and RNH has masterfully made great money, while also remaining in the city he loves and adhering himself to the fans because his AAV isn’t out of whack. It is unfortunate that some fans only view a player through the lens of their salary, but it is something players should consider. I’d argue the pressure of living up to a large contract is more than living up to a being a high draft pick. There is an ugly side to how people view money and RNH has avoided that.

He’s also performed well. As outlined above, he’s on track to........

© Oilers Nation