Nail Yakupov's NHL career never took off in North America, and he's fine with it. The 27-year-old, who has spent the last three seasons in the KHL, gave an interview in his home country in which he was asked about life in America. He appeared to be relieved to be back in Russia.
"I won't say anything bad about America, but it's boring there. There are gorgeous conditions - the organization is top everywhere - but with my mentality, which was formed in Russia, in America there was a lack of action. Life is too measured," Yakupov said.
Taken first overall by the Edmonton Oilers in 2012, Yakupov played six seasons in the NHL between Edmonton, St. Louis and Colorado. He played a total of 350 regular season games, scoring 62 goals and 136 points.
Yakupov won a Gagarin Cup with Avangard last season. His teammates included former NHLers Ilya Kovalchuk, Alexei Emelin, and Vladimir Zharkov.
