Yamamoto could play big role for Oilers in Qualifying Round

Kailer Yamamoto could play an important role for the Edmonton Oilers when they play the Chicago Blackhawks in the Western Conference Qualifying Round.

The 21-year-old forward, who began the season with Bakersfield of the American Hockey League, scored 26 points (11 goals, 15 assists) in 27 games for the Oilers after being recalled Dec. 29.

"I felt a lot better this year," Yamamoto said in an interview with Sportsnet on Saturday. "My first years (in professional hockey) I didn't know how I wanted to play, but this year has been a lot of fun. I think it helped me out a lot getting sent down to Bakersfield at the beginning of the year, just getting my confidence back and getting my legs back after having (wrist) surgery the year before."

Yamamoto, Edmonton's first-round pick (No. 22) in the 2017 NHL Draft, thrived playing on a line with Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. They combined to score 108 points (Draisaitl 45, Nugent-Hopkins 37 and Yamamoto 26) in the 27 games Yamamoto played before the season was paused March 12 due to concerns about the coronavirus.

"Coming up this year was a lot better," said Yamamoto, who scored five points (one goal, four assists) in 26 NHL games before this season. "I was a lot more confident with my game and I knew I belonged there (in the NHL). Obviously, playing on Draisaitl and Nugent-Hopkins' line makes it that much easier, so it was a lot of fun this year."

Yamamoto has helped round out Edmonton's top-six forwards. The Oilers have two potent lines for the Blackhawks to be concerned about defending, one centered by Draisaitl, who led the NHL in scoring with 110 points (43 goals, 67 assists) this season, the other by Connor McDavid, who was second in the scoring race with 97 points (34 goals, 63 assists).

The difference for Yamamoto now, he said, is that he's confident enough to play at a high-level with skilled forwards like Draisaitl and Nugent-Hopkins.

"There's definitely some work behind the scenes, but I've also played with them off and on throughout my three years, so I kind of knew how they played when I was coming up here," Yamamoto said of his linemates. "It was just question of if I could make a play to them or not. … but this year I started making plays to them and I think it just started to come naturally and luckily we were just having a lot of success."

The NHL announced its Return to Play Plan on May 26 with 24 teams in competition for the Stanley Cup. The tournament will begin with a 16-team, eight-series qualifying round and a Seeding Round Robin among the top four teams in each conference to determine seeds for the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The 12 qualifying teams from the Eastern and Western conferences were determined by points percentage as of March 12, with Edmonton (37-25-9, .585) scheduled to play Chicago (32-30-8, .514).

The Oilers were 1-2-0 against the Blackhawks this season, splitting the two games when Yamamoto was in the lineup Feb. 11 and March 5. He scored three goals in two games against Chicago, two in a 5-3 win at Rogers Place in February, perhaps giving him even more confidence heading into the qualifying round.

As he trains at home in Spokane, Washington, Yamamoto said he is thinking big.

"Hopefully we can get back to it and hopefully win the Stanley Cup."