Ryan Nugent-Hopkins makes his feelings known about $38,500,000 Oilers linemate playing with broken nose

Edmonton Oilers center Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has praised teammate Zach Hyman for playing with a broken nose. Hyman suffered the injury in a high-octane rematch of last season's Stanley Cup Final between the Oilers and the Florida Panthers on Monday, December 16, which the Oilers lost 6-5.

Nugent-Hopkins is much accustomed to playing the left-wing spot along side Hyman, who is in the midst of a seven-year, $38.5 million contract, and Oilers captain Connor McDavid.

While responding to a question from the media on Friday about his linemate Hyman's ability to perform despite the injury, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins said,

"It's not easy, especially that first one back, probably can't breathe too well. We know he's got that touch around the net & the bubble didn't stop him for sure."

The 32-year-old Hyman sustained his nose inury after being struck by a deflated shot by the Oilers defenceman Evan Bouchard. Notably, Hyman scored the first two goals for the Oilers and played a significant role in giving his team a 4-2 lead in the second period. After leaving the game at 8:52 in the second period, the left-winger returned in the third period sporting a face shield.

However, the defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers staged an impressive comeback by outscoring the Oilers in the third period to win the match 6-5. Nevertheless, neither the loss nor Hyman's injury has affected the team, as Edmonton has won three consecutive games. Hyman, a former 50-goal scorer, has scored a goal in each of those games.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins set to return ahead of Oilers' California road trip

NHL: Edmonton Oilers at Vegas Golden Knights - Source: Imagn

The Edmonton Oilers (21-11-2) are riding three-game winning streak and have won 11 of their last 13 games. Currently sitting second in the Pacific Division, their only two losses this month have come against the Pacific Division-leading Vegas Golden Knights (23-8-3) earlier in December and the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers on December 16.

The Oilers are set to end this year against the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday, December 28 at Crypto.com Arena in LA, followed by a matchup against the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday at the Honda Center.

Their chances of securing victory in those games have gotten a boost with the inclusion of their most experienced player, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who missed the last game on Sunday. As per Bob Stauffer of the Oilers Radio Network:

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, in his 14th season with the Edmonton Oilers, has played 33 out of the 34 games for the Oilers this season. His sole absence of the season came against the Ottawa Senators, on Sunday, December 22, due to an illness.

However, the Christmas week break gave him enough time to recover, and now he's all set to play top line as usual.