[Tinordi]

WRT Yakupov or Murray, I think you really have to play the odds when you have the #1 pick. In many respects having first overall puts more constraints on you because the pressure to get it right is much higher.

Almost every team does play the odds and makes the 1st overall instead of trading it. Extremely rare to trade down.

Why? Because the first overall player is the closest thing to a sure thing you're going to get. If you trade down your handful of magic beans gets alot smaller. At the time Trouba was really raw, there were questions on whether he'd ever make the jump. They weren't loud or persistent questions but there was risk with Trouba, Dumba, hell even Murray. Yakupov had little risk, he had size, skating and the shot that would pretty much guarantee he'd be a player of some capacity.

If you really want to maximize value for your organization, you minimize your risk exposure on draft day by choosing the surest thing to pan out and then, if need be, you trade that player for sure things. The value Yakupov would bring back on draft day was yes, say Trouba and extra assets hell even a roster player. The value that Yakupov would bring back now is almost certainly higher. Because he's show that he can score in the NHL.

So I just fail to see how people are criticizing the Oilers for that pick. Smells of baseless rival talk not real analysis of the situation.