Nugent-Hopkins learned about overcoming adversity early in his hockey career.
His slight build meant he had to work harder than the bigger kids he was playing against, including his older brother, Adam.
Nugent-Hopkins learned about overcoming adversity early in his hockey career.
His slight build meant he had to work harder than the bigger kids he was playing against, including his older brother, Adam.
In his second year of pee-wee hockey eligibility, Nugent-Hopkins did not play competitive hockey at all. His parents, Debbie Nugent and Roger Hopkins, had divorced, and Roger was diagnosed with lymphoma and required costly surgery to remove his spleen.
The tight family finances meant Nugent-Hopkins took a sabbatical from hockey, though he worked out with a trainer that season.
Not that the hiatus held him back. Nugent-Hopkins was the top pick in the Western Hockey League Bantam Draft in 2008 and soon emerged as an elite scorer for Red Deer. He had 31 goals and 106 points in 2010-11 and was drafted by the Edmonton Oilers with the No. 1 pick in the 2011 NHL Draft.
As an NHL rookie, Nugent-Hopkins had 52 points in 62 games. He finished second to the Colorado Avalanche's Gabriel Landeskog in voting for the Calder Trophy, awarded to the League's top rookie.
Nugent-Hopkins spent half the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season with Oklahoma City, Edmonton's American Hockey League affiliate, then joined Canada's national junior team, which named him captain. That Canadian team finished fourth at the World Junior Championship, but Nugent-Hopkins was named the tournament's best forward.
From there, the 6-foot, 189-pound center continued to evolve into a solid, two-way pro, a smart, versatile player the Oilers coaching staff trusts in all situations.
