Rattie hopes he’ll fit with McDavid, Nugent-Hopkins
Unheralded forward looking to build on late-season success with top line
Edmonton Oilers fans, you aren’t the only ones anxiously waiting to see whether Ty Rattie can be a long-term solution on a line with Connor McDavid and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins.
McDavid and Nugent-Hopkins have a pretty big stake in this experiment and are just as curious to see how far it can go.
Rattie, who has been waiting his whole career for an opportunity like this, made good on it in a short window late last season, putting up five goals and four assists in 14 games on the top line.
That didn’t earn him any guarantees this season, just another chance. He has to prove all over again that somebody with 49 career NHL games and nine career NHL goals deserves to be on a line with the best player in the world.
If Thursday night’s five-point game against Winnipeg is any indication, he’ll be holding on to that spot for a while.
“He’s skating really well,” said McDavid. “I definitely noticed it the other night when he played (in Vancouver). He was really moving well and bore down on his chances. I’ve liked what I’ve seen.”
The right side remains an area of concern in Edmonton with a cast of young or unproven (or both) candidates being counted on to fill some deep holes. So it’s important for everyone that he works out there.
From what his linemates have seen so far, Rattie looks more prepared this time than he did on short notice last year.
“I got to play with and against him for a long time and I do know what kind of a player he is,” said Nugent-Hopkins, saw a lot of Rattie in their WHL days. “When he gets an opportunity, he takes advantage of it. He wants to prove himself and make sure he’s producing and playing well every night.
“He came in with a good mindset and so far he’s looked pretty good with the three of us. I don’t see any drop-off in his game this year. In my mind, he’s a talented player who deserves to be here.”
Head coach Todd McLellan also wanted to see what Rattie looks like when he isn’t playing with a franchise player and the result was a two-goal effort against the Canucks, while McDavid and NugentHopkins were back home watching on TV.
“He looks like a more desperate, hungrier player here this year than he was last year,” said McLellan. “To me, that’s telling me he believes he belongs here. He wants his spot and he’s going to play that way. Let’s keep seeing it night after night after night and good things will happen for him and for us.”
They usually do when your centre is McDavid.
“He just has to play his game,” said McDavid. “He’s a good player. He’s been great in junior, he’s battled his way through the pro ranks and now he’s here. He’s doing a lot of good things. He just has to be himself.”
ON THE WING, MAN
You can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but since Nugent-Hopkins is only 25, this move from centre to left wing appears to be working.
He spent the last 15 games there at the end of last season and lined up there again at the world championship in Denmark, so he’s feeling much more at home in a place that was initially very foreign after all those years in the middle.
“I’m getting more used to it,” said Nugent-Hopkins, who spent a lot of time working on his play with the puck along the boards. “It’s something that’s important as a winger; you want to be good on the walls.
“I still want to be able to help out down low and take faceoffs if I need to. If I need to be put into the centre spot, there won’t be any discomfort there. I’ll be able to jump into it pretty easy since it’s what I’ve done my whole life.”
McLellan added that the transition is made much easier by the fact Nugent-Hopkins is the guy making the transition.
“Nuge is a smart player, he’s a cerebral guy who has a competitive nature when the puck is dropped,” said the coach, who believes the forward positions are largely interchangeable. “I was more impressed with the fact that the two of them found each other and gelled quickly. Smart, skilled, competitive guys can adjust very quickly to that type of change.”
He came in with a good mindset and so far he’s looked pretty good with the three of us. I don’t see any drop-off in his game this year.
With their final game of the preseason taking place in Germany, the Oilers are wasting no time paring their roster down. To that end, they made another handful of cuts Thursday with Tyler Benson being the biggest name going down to the American Hockey League’s Bakersfield Condors.
Benson has had a strong training camp, but having missed so much hockey over the last two years, he is behind on his development and needs some pro seasoning.
Joining him on the plane are forwards Josh Currie, Joseph Gambardella and Patrick Russell, defencemen Caleb Jones, William Lagesson and Ryan Stanton and goaltender Dylan Wells.That leaves Edmonton with 35 players, including four goaltenders.