Just a Matter of Time Before Edmonton Oilers Jump Up to Become Dynasty ... Again

Another draft and another No. 1 selection for the Edmonton Oilers.

After selecting Taylor Hall with the No. 1 pick in 2010 and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins with the top pick last year, the Oilers once again went for offense when they selected Russian phenom Nail Yakupov with the opening pick of the 2012 draft.

Yakupov is a sensational athlete with quick feet and even faster hands. Give him just a few inches of daylight and he will put the puck by the goaltender in the blink of an eye.

Yakupov became the third Russian player to become the No. 1 pick in the draft, joining Ilya Kovalchuk (Atlanta, 2001) and Alexander Ovechkin (Washington, 2004). Yakupov played for the Sarnia Sting in the Ontario Hockey League last season and scored 31 goals and had 38 assists in 42 regular-season games.

Yakupov is a 5'11", 185-pound right wing who can accelerate in an instant. He has patterned his game after former Russian superstar Pavel Bure, who dominated highlight films for the Vancouver Canucks with his ability to break into the open and rip off vicious shots. Bure also had shorter stays with the Florida Panthers and New York Rangers.

The Oilers are stockpiling superstars. Their young talent includes artistic and explosive Jordan Eberle in addition to Hall, Nugent-Hopkins and Yakupov.

Hall and Yakupov are dynamic and powerful skaters who should be dominant goal scorers. Nugent-Hopkins has the vision, patience and exquisite passing ability to set up his teammates. Eberle may be the most underrated of all of them but he has the skating speed, the passing ability and the talent to put the puck in the net.

It's just a matter of time before this young group turns potential into production and the Oilers start lighting up the scoreboard. Look for this group to return to the playoffs in 2012-13. They will start dominating in the playoffs shortly after that.  

The talent level is simply too high for opponents to contain. There are many other elements that go into becoming a long-term winner, but if you don't have the requisite talent, it's impossible to get to the top and stay there.

The Oiler franchise knows all about dynasties and domination. But it's been 22 years since Mark Messier led them to a five-game triumph over the Boston Bruins in the 1990 Stanley Cup Finals.

That was the last time the Oilers lifted the Stanley Cup and it was their fifth championship in seven years. That's what happens when you have players like Messier, Wayne Gretzky, Paul Coffey, Jari Kurri and Grant Fuhr.

That's a daunting legacy but the Oilers are stockpiling talent and it's just a matter of time before they turn it on like that revered group once did and start wreaking havoc throughout the NHL.