NHL No. 1 draft pick Nail Yakupov will return to his hometown KHL team Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk in case of an NHL lockout, team director Rafik Yakubov told R-Sport on Tuesday.
Yakupov, 18, this year became the first Russian since Alex Ovechkin in 2004 to be No. 1 pick and signed a three-year deal with the Edmonton Oilers in July.
"Yakupov will be playing in Nizhnekamsk in case of a lockout," the club general director Rafik Yakubov told R-Sport.
"He's our guy, the one we are looking forward to. We know Nail well, he was with the team during last summer's training camp, came this year despite being busy due to the NHL draft."
Neftekhimik is not the first Russian club to say it will sign a major NHL name in the event of a lockout. Metallurg Magnitogorsk's vice-president said earlier this month his team would exercise its rights to Evgeni Malkin.
Despite the wealth of potential riches on offer in case of a lockout, Neftekhimik will not look beyond Yakupov, the director said, adding that it had no extra space in the KHL's foreign player quota.
"Neftekhimik does not want any one but Yakupov. Neither a foreigner, as we have all the positions closed, nor any Russians."
Yakupov was born in the town of Nizhnekamsk, around 900 kilometers east of Moscow in the Tatarstan region, and began his career with local junior team Reaktor in 2009.
He moved to North America in 2010 with Ontario Hockey League team Sarnia Sting.
Yakupov played in Russia's 2012 World Junior Championship team that lost to 4-3 to Sweden in the final in December.
That team also contained the two other Russian first round picks this year, forward Alexander Svitov, picked third by the Tampa Bay Lightning, and winger Stanislav Chistov, the fifth pick who joined the Anaheim Ducks.
