The Edmonton Oilers still have three weeks to decide what to do with the first overall pick in the 2012 NHL Draft, but one Hall-of-Famer sees an obvious fit in Sarnia winger Nail Yakupov. Igor Larionov - agent to Yakupov as well as projected top-10 pick Alex Galchenyuk - sees the consensus number-one pick being a key component to the Oilers moving forward, should they take him. Speaking to TSN Radio 1050s Bryan Hayes, Larionov looked at the Oilers as a team ready to make the next step and being able to contend in the NHL. “Now theyve got to start to make the playoffs and start to play better as a team and be more consistent,” Larionov told Hayes. “I think Nail would be the perfect candidate [for them]. He can get right in the line-up and play hockey with all those young guys.” The jury is still out on what the Oilers will do with the first pick, but Larionov believes the team has the talent to be a special group, likening them to talented teams of the past. “Its fun to watch them and it kind of reminds me of the Edmonton Oilers of the early 80s and the Red Army team after Lake Placid,” he said. “There were so many young guys and we were very successful because [we] had hockey sense and skill and speed and desire to be successful.” The Oilers appear to be considering Yakupov among their many options. Larionov admitted towards the end of the interview that Yakupov was headed to Edmonton on Sunday for a day and a half after this weeks NHL Draft Combine is through. He will then head home to prepare for the Draft. With both his clients expected to go early on in the draft – possibly even both in the top-five – Larionov knows they both have a long summer ahead of them if they wish to follow the likes of Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Gabriel Landeskog, Taylor Hall and Jeff Skinner and take a regular NHL shift as 18-year-olds. “They realize this is going to be a big challenge for them,” he said. “Its a hard path and its not an easy road. But if you have the mindset to go to the NHL, you have to be ready right now and have a productive summer of workouts and show up at training camp in the top shape and be hungry to make the team.” A veteran of 14 NHL seasons and 12 seasons in the Soviet League, Larionov also offered unique perspective on the state of Russian hockey players in the league today. While the lure of the Kontinental Hockey League has presented an obstacle in getting some Russian players to commit to the NHL in the early part of their careers, Larionov believes the choice is simple if a player wants to play against the best competition. “Its a situation with the KHL right now because young players can make more money,” Larionov said. “They can stay there but at the same time, [there] is only one league that is the best in the world and thats the National Hockey League.” Yakupov, who is a native Russian and Galchenyuk, who is American-born but is the son of a former Belarusian national have the added appeal of having played their junior hockey in Ontario with the OHLs Sarnia Sting. Larionov is trying to prepare both his clients for the long road ahead, regardless of which teams control their rights as of June 22. “Its very hard sometimes to explain to players [that] if you want to play at the highest level, thats the level you want to be [at]… in the NHL,” Larionov said. “Those two guys – Alex and Nail – they realize that and theyre very serious about [putting] in a lot of work this summer and [impressing] the teams that want to pick them in the draft and play in the National Hockey League next year.” Jerseys Cheap Online. GTA Sports & Entertainmnent is the group looking to build an NHL-sized arena north of Toronto. In September, they proposed a new funding formula that would see no public money used towards the construction of the building. Jerseys Cheap Baseball.K and Malcolm Subban, as this will mark the first official time the two brothers will play against each other. http://www.jerseyscheapwholesale.us.com/. The 22-year-old made his season debut last Wednesday after being out of action since December 8 with a concussion that he suffered during the lockout while playing with the Marlies. Jerseys Cheap NFL. On Saturday, he replaced Max Pacioretty on the Habs top line with David Desharnais and Erik Cole. Cheap Nike New England Patriots Jerseys." Briefly out of the league, he is indeed back again -- this time with his fourth team, hoping to bring stability to the reeling Browns.Join TSN.ca in a 30 Teams In 30 Days tour of the NHL in preparation for the upcoming season. Today, we examine the 2011-12 campaign for the Vancouver Canucks. Get the lowdown on their off-season and the issues they face this season. And use the Your Call feature to give us your take! Its hard to look at the season the Vancouver Canucks just had and label it a failure. Until you get to the final two games of the Stanley Cup Final. To that point, everything had gone as perfectly as you could script a dream season. The Canucks ran away with the regular season crown. A Sedin led the league in scoring again. Ryan Kesler became arguably the best two-way player in the game. Roberto Luongo tied for the league lead in wins. Better yet, they held a 3-2 series lead over the Boston Bruins. And then it all fell apart. They were dismantled early in Game 6 in Boston. Back at home, in the deciding game of the NHL season, they were dominated by Tim Thomas. And just like that, the dream season turned into a nightmare. And that doesnt even include the rioting. Ugly all around if you bleed Canucks blue. After that demoralizing end, its gotta be Cup-or-nothing this year, right? Heres a look at whats in store for this season. Additions: LW Marco Sturm, RW Mark Mancari, RW Byron Bitz, LW Mike Duco, C Andrew Ebbett, D Ryan Parent Subtractions: D Christian Ehrhoff, LW Raffi Torres, LW Jeff Tambellini, LW Tanner Glass Prospect Report: Forward Cody Hodgson is a young player to keep an eye on. The one-time OHL Player of the Year and top pick from 2008 has yet to make a serious bid to secure a spot with the big club. This year might be his best chance. With Mason Raymond recovering from a major back injury, a good camp could slot Hodgson into a top-six forward position on opening night - at which his skill set seems to be best suited. Nicklas Jensen was their lone first-round pick in 2011, selected 29th overall. The 18-year-old had 29 goals and 29 assists with Oshawa (OHL) last year. He tied for the team lead in goals (7) during the 2011 playoffs. Breakout Player to Watch: The Canucks seemingly have one player achieve breakout status year after year. Whether its Raymond, Kesler or Alex Burrows, the players continually emerge at the right time. If hes able to remain healthy, Alex Edler could be that player this season. The 25-year-old defenceman has been a steady contributor, last season he had 33 points in 51 games played and was a plus-13 rating, but if he could find another gear has the possibility of being one of the main guys to lead the Canucks deep into the playoffs once again. Marquee Match-Up: Jan. 7 at Bruins - A rematch of last seasons Cup final. They unraveled early and often in Beantown: Three losses, outscored 17-3 and Roberto Luongo was yanked twice. The only time he wasnt pulled, he gave up eight goals. Other Dates To Watch: Nov. 6 at Chicago. The rivalry continues, so cue up the Chelsea Dagger. Actually, if youre the Canucks - dont. Reason To Get Excited: The Cannucks will entertain on a nightly basis and will likely pile up wins, points and personal accolades along the way.dddddddddddd But nothing will matter until the playoffs start. Theyve accomplished everything an NHL franchise can - except capture the Stanley Cup. Hands down, theyre Canadas best shot at a championship. Home Hardware: What werent they nominated for last year? On top of capturing the Presidents Trophy as the leagues top team, Daniel Sedin won the Art Ross Trophy as NHL scoring leader, (just a year after Henrik did it). Daniel was also a finalist for the Hart Trophy. Ryan Kesler captured the Selke Trophy as the leagues top defensive forward (while piling up a career-high 41 goals), Alain Vigneault was a finalist for coach of the year and Luongo was a finalist for the Vezina trophy. Expect at least a few of these usual suspects on the awards ballots at the end of next year too. On The Hot Seat: Roberto Luongo. Not that the Sedins or Kesler arent under the gun either, but much of the blame for Vancouvers post-season failures lie in Luongos inability to steal a game on his own, especially when the Canucks needed it. With chants for Cory Schneider getting louder, it could be his final chance to erase the perceived reputation as a goalie who cant handle the playoff pressure. His final chance in Vancouver, anyways. Anything can happen. The Canucks made a big splash on the trade front acquiring Keith Ballard from Florida last summer, inheriting a contract that pays the veteran blueliner $4.2 million a season for four more years. And for that salary, he wasnt much of a difference maker in the lineup. Ballard was a healthy scratch in the early going and was almost an afterthought through most of the playoffs. With a new season on the horizon, Ballard will have a clean sheet to build on with Vigneault. Its Your! Call: Can the Canucks break through and win the Stanley Cup? They were one win away from capturing hockeys ultimate prize, so its a hard sell to say that the Canucks have to find a way to get over the hump. And thats not saying that they dont need to improve. Boston was simply the better team and outplayed their Western Conference counterparts. Instead of sweeping wholesale changes that some fans may have wanted, general manager Mike Gillis kept his core intact, losing only Christian Erhoff. Hes hoping that a lengthy playoff run and the motivation provided by that stinging final series loss will be the right tonic for another go. A healthy roster might also have made the difference. Kesler (hip), Henrik Sedin (back), Kevin Bieksa (MCL bruise), Alex Edler (two broken fingers) and Chris Higgins (foot) all gutted it out to the end, while the team lost regular contributors Raymond (back), Mikael Samuelsson (leg), and Dan Hamhuis (abdominal tear) along the way. And of course, Luongo will not get a chance to answer his critics until the postseason, when the games matter most. And much of the blame and little of the praise will be put upon him in losses or wins. wholesale jerseys　 Cheap Jerseys　 ' ' '