Edmonton Oilers: 2 Underrated Players To Watch

The NHL has so many underrated players who deserve far more recognition. In this segment, we will be discussing two from every team in the league. Their overall roles and abilities may differ, but they all share the common theme that they are not as respected as they ought to be.

For full transparency, two teams will be randomly picked from a wheel each day. The winners will then be discussed.

Today's second team will be the Edmonton Oilers. With them, they have two franchise talents in Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl who fans rightfully focus most on. As a result of this, it is easy to not praise their other players as much as they truly warrant. These two specific players are prime examples who come to mind.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins C/LW: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins may not be a superstar like McDavid and Draisaitl, but he is still very good. He has the ability to play both center and on the wing, so the Oilers have multiple options with him. He also can be utilized on both the power play and penalty kill. They were wise to re-sign him to an eight-year extension because of everything he provides. It also is a bonus that his average annual value is only $5.125 million. In 52 games this season, the 2011 first overall pick scored 16 goals and had 35 points. Although he never became that elite talent many expected him to be, he is still a very solid top-six forward in this league.

Jesse Puljujärvi RW: The Oilers selected Jesse Puljujärvi with the fourth overall pick of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. He had his struggles to cement himself as a legitimate NHLer, which made many people of the hockey world criticize him heavily. After a nine point campaign in 46 games during the 2018-19 season, he requested a trade and even spent the following season back in Liiga. Yet, when he returned to the Oilers this past season, he found success. In 55 games, he scored 15 goals and had 25 points. He seems to be forming into a top-six winger, so expect big things from him this year.