Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
Nugent-Hopkins is back from his lower-body absence and is playing as Edmonton's second-line center on the top power-play unit, so for now he is a healthy top-six piece.
Role
Daily Faceoff's page, fetched 2 November and last updated 1 November, projects him as center on the second line between Colton Dach and Kasperi Kapanen, behind Podkolzin, McDavid and Draisaitl. It has him on the first power-play unit with Kapanen, Draisaitl, McDavid and Bouchard. It is not listed on the first penalty-kill unit (McDavid, Michaels, Shea, Murphy) or the second (Kapanen, Joseph, Ekholm, Mukhamadullin). Pro Hockey Rumors, writing when he was activated, said he looked set to take back the top power play and join the penalty-kill rotation, but I did not see him on a Daily Faceoff PK unit. I found no ice-time figures. He missed the first nine games and debuted on October 22, and SSBCrack reports three goals in five games since, including a power-play goal set up by McDavid. Earlier reporting had him with Hyman and Kapanen, but Hyman is not in the Daily Faceoff forward projection, and I did not check why. The supplied wire note about Thursday against Carolina does not fit this timeline, since he apparently played Carolina on October 22. I could not reconcile the two, so check the latest injury status before you rely on this.
He holds a top power-play spot next to McDavid and Draisaitl, and that is where his production comes from. He has three goals in five games since returning, and the coach eased him back in. Pro Hockey Rumors notes he produced 61 points in 78 combined regular-season and playoff games in 2025-26. He also has a track record of power-play scoring, with multiple power-play goals through March and April 2026 per RotoWire items on CBS.
He is 33, and Pro Hockey Rumors says he is no longer the 104-point player he was in 2022-23. He has already missed time this year with a lower-body injury. OilersNation has questioned whether he is still an effective NHL center rather than a winger. His linemates on the current second line (Dach, Kapanen) are depth wingers, so his even-strength output depends on that line, not on McDavid.
Where analysts split
The open question is where he plays. Daily Faceoff and OilersNation's game thread have him at center on line two between Dach and Kapanen. An OilersNation column from before his return floated moving him to the wing beside McDavid, and CBS's player blurb has also said he might shift to the wing. The result decides whether he gets top-line even-strength minutes or stays on a depth-winger line. The power-play role is not in dispute.
Research confidence: reported. Outlooks are grounded in web search over current reporting and refreshed through the season.
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