Instead of the Maroon-McDavid-Draisaitl combination that Edmonton had for this past year, Stauffer recommending making Draisaitl the second line centre and putting Ryan Nugent-Hopkins on the first line right wing.
Nugent-Hopkins didn’t have his best season, but it wasn’t his worst either. In his first-ever full 82-game season, the 24-year-old finished with 18 goals and 43 points.
However, Nugent-Hopkins has struggled at times, going through lengthy scoring droughts and putting up inconsistent point totals. In addition, his 43.8 percent success in the faceoff circle was nothing to write home about.
With Nugent-Hopkins looking to put up more points and to perform more to his potential (which he hasn’t reached at centre), a move to the wing could benefit him.