Gotta See It: Yakupov’s goal party too much?

Gotta See It: Nail Yakupov knows how to rejoice.

The Edmonton Oilers forward bats in a Taylor Hall rebound past Jonathan Quick with a scant 4.7 ticks remaining in regulation to knot the game at one and spoil both the Conn Smythe winner’s shutout bid and the 2012 champs’ best stab at a victory in 2013 with one flick of the stick. And then he goes gorillas.

Screaming, flailing arms, then a spinning double knee slide nearly the length of the ice. Soccer style. The 16,839 at Rexall Place roared with approval.

It’s great theatre, and it’s contagious, and it spits in the face of the “act like you’ve done it before” philosophy. The Oilers would go on to complete the victory in overtime, infuriating the Kings and their winless coach, Darryl Sutter.

“It’s unbelievable, the passion he plays with,” fellow Oiler Sam Gagner, who potted the OT winner, said afterward. “It gets his teammates going and the fans going. I think it’s great.”

If you thought Edmonton’s first-overall pick’s jubilant celebration after his first NHL goal on Tuesday – jumping, hugging, hollering – was passionate, then he just trumped it.

The goal carried extra gravitas because the Oil appeared to have tied the game a minute prior. With 1:05 on the clock, a goal by Ryan Nugent-Hopkins was wiped off the scoreboard following video review. The officials ruled that Gagner was in the crease when RNH scored. Furious, fans chucked debris on the ice; they were certain Rob Scuderi had shoved Gagner into Quick on the play.

But Yakupov erased all controversy and metaphorically cleaned up the garbage.

“It’s a great feeling, best feeling,” Yakupov said. “We showed our heart. It was the best night in the world. I’ve never seen anything like this.”

Yakupov’s “knee glee” celebration is, of course, reminiscent of a vintage celly from another young Alberta hockey hero:

Was Nail Yakupov’s goal celebration too much?

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