Around the OHL: Knights' Ferry stings Yakupov
Potential number-one overall
pick of this year's NHL draft Nail
Yakupov was held to only one
assist in a 3-2 shootout loss on
October 30 against the London
Knights.
The first-place London Knights held a one point lead over the second- place Sarnia Sting going into the game in London in the OHL overall standings. The very obvious game plan for the London Knights was to keep leading league scorer Yakupov off the scoring sheet. They did so by putting a shadow on the Russian sniper, London's Tyler Ferry.
London Knights Coach Dale Hunter's game plan worked to near perfection as Yakupov was held to one assist on Sarnia's first goal of the game, scored from a screen shot from the slot by Ludvig Rensfeldt. Ferry, London's undrafted over-ager, was assigned to shadow Yakupov, and he was never more than six feet away from Yakupov from puck drop to the final buzzer. The final result was a very passive playing style from Yakupov, who took his aggressive style of play and threw it out the window after the Russian took an undisciplined slashing penalty 23 seconds into the game.
This raises questions.
How will Yakupov's statistics and overall draft ranking be affected if other OHL teams pick up on this?
If Yakupov can't beat an undrafted over-ager (with all due respect), he won't be able to keep up with other players in the NHL. All in all, Yakupov plays better when he has his space to make plays; this is how Sarnia has gone: 11-2-0-3. Yakupov is a strong young player who is dangerous when he has the puck on his stick. This year he has been hurting his opponents the most by setting up his teammates, recording 22 assists thus far in the early season.
But how can he be so effective if he doesn't have the puck?
He can't. This will be something that he is not used to... yet. His teammates have been looking to feed Yakupov to set up a play. He is most effective as a trigger man on the power-play with the great vision on solid puck handling he has developed.
So, is he a real threat?
Absolutely. Keep in mind, this is only the 18-year-old Russian's second year in the OHL, and he's also following up on his CHL rookie of the year award (finishing the 2010/11 season with 101 points in 65 games played). This is the first time he has been played with the great deal of attention; the Knights noticed how dangerous he is with the puck, they made it their top priority to shut him down, and they succeeded. Sarnia will look at the game tape and find a new offensive audible when their opponents choose to put a shadow on their Russian superstar. Count on Sarnia to bring a new offensive style to beat London in their next meeting on December 30.
The first-place London Knights held a one point lead over the second- place Sarnia Sting going into the game in London in the OHL overall standings. The very obvious game plan for the London Knights was to keep leading league scorer Yakupov off the scoring sheet. They did so by putting a shadow on the Russian sniper, London's Tyler Ferry.
London Knights Coach Dale Hunter's game plan worked to near perfection as Yakupov was held to one assist on Sarnia's first goal of the game, scored from a screen shot from the slot by Ludvig Rensfeldt. Ferry, London's undrafted over-ager, was assigned to shadow Yakupov, and he was never more than six feet away from Yakupov from puck drop to the final buzzer. The final result was a very passive playing style from Yakupov, who took his aggressive style of play and threw it out the window after the Russian took an undisciplined slashing penalty 23 seconds into the game.
This raises questions.
How will Yakupov's statistics and overall draft ranking be affected if other OHL teams pick up on this?
If Yakupov can't beat an undrafted over-ager (with all due respect), he won't be able to keep up with other players in the NHL. All in all, Yakupov plays better when he has his space to make plays; this is how Sarnia has gone: 11-2-0-3. Yakupov is a strong young player who is dangerous when he has the puck on his stick. This year he has been hurting his opponents the most by setting up his teammates, recording 22 assists thus far in the early season.
But how can he be so effective if he doesn't have the puck?
He can't. This will be something that he is not used to... yet. His teammates have been looking to feed Yakupov to set up a play. He is most effective as a trigger man on the power-play with the great vision on solid puck handling he has developed.
So, is he a real threat?
Absolutely. Keep in mind, this is only the 18-year-old Russian's second year in the OHL, and he's also following up on his CHL rookie of the year award (finishing the 2010/11 season with 101 points in 65 games played). This is the first time he has been played with the great deal of attention; the Knights noticed how dangerous he is with the puck, they made it their top priority to shut him down, and they succeeded. Sarnia will look at the game tape and find a new offensive audible when their opponents choose to put a shadow on their Russian superstar. Count on Sarnia to bring a new offensive style to beat London in their next meeting on December 30.
