Welcome to Oilersnation’s annual player review series, where we dive into the Edmonton Oilers season player by player. We’ll look back at the season that was, what kind of impact each player had, and what we could see from them next season. You can read about the analytics behind my analysis here.

The decline is underway

On January 18, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins celebrated his 1000th NHL game. The Edmonton Oilers honoured his milestone with a ceremony attended by his friends, family, teammates, and over 18 thousand fans who had watched his 15-year journey with the franchise unfold.

Reliving all the milestones and memories on the video board at Rogers Place was enough to make any fan emotional. Not just because he’s done so much for the team and the community over the years, but because his time as an impact player for the Oilers is winding down. 

While Nugent-Hopkins still spent a healthy portion of this season next to Connor McDavid, his production at five-on-five more closely resembled a bottom-six forward for the second campaign in a row. 

Despite playing much of the season on the top line, Nugent-Hopkins produced fewer points per hour than middle-six forwards Kasperi Kapanen (1.79), Jack Roslovic (1.73), and Matt........

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