The NHL has a long standing tradition of prioritizing size in players, especially at the draft table. This has caused many smaller players to slip through the cracks and make some NHL teams and executives look like geniuses.
Over the years there have been many players who have been able to make a name for themselves despite their stature; Martin St. Louis, Johnny Gaudreau, Brian Gionta,and Alex DeBrincat. At the 2017 Draft a similar trend was playing itself out and caused Spokane Chiefs (WHL) winger Kailer Yamamoto to slide to the Oilers at 22nd overall.
The 5-9 winger went from 19 goals and 52 assists for 71 points in 57 games in the year before his draft year to 42 goals and 57 assists and 99 points in 65 games in his draft year. He looked like he was going to pay off in a big way for the Oilers, coming to training camp just months after being drafted and earning himself a nine-game tryout the following year in 2017-18, notching three assists. He returned to Spokane that year scoring 64 points in only 40 games, ready to play in his first full season as a pro.
He looked like a star
Over the next two years, Yamamoto would struggle to find a permanent spot with the Oilers scoring his first career goal on October 18, 2018 but later being sent down to the club's AHL-affiliate the Bakersfield Condors.
The next year in 2019-20, after a stint with the Condors, he looked like he was really paying off for the team scoring 11 goals and 15 assists in 27 games. He found a lot of success on a line with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Leon Draisaitl. This season was cut short due to the pandemic but things were really looking up for the young winger.
In 2020-21, he took a step back, amassing only 21 points in 52 games in the bubble year but took another step forward the following year, scoring 20 goals and 41 points in 81 games. He set career highs in every metric and earned himself a two-year contract extension.
The 2022-23 season was tough for Yamamoto who found himself a healthy scratch at times and struggling through injuries. Likely the rocky nature of this season saw him take a step back in terms of production, scoring only 25 points in 58 games. This up and down production signalled a few things, specifically that his scoring was less indicative of his skill level and more due to the elevation of others. That is largely why, after his struggles in 2023, the club was willing to package him with Klim Kostin to the Detroit Red Wings for future considerations.
Right after his trade, the Red Wings placed him on unconditional waivers for the purpose of buying out his contract. This left the 24 year old once highly rated forward an unrestricted free agent (UFA) much earlier than he normally would be, and meant that now two clubs had essentially thrown him away for nothing.
He signed a one-year deal worth $1.5 million with the Seattle Kraken on day two of the NHL free agency period. He then played mostly fourth line minutes for the Kraken, being a healthy scratch on numerous occasions and scoring only eight goals and assists for 16 points in 59 games. At this stage Yamamoto’s career was in a freefall forcing him to go unsigned throughout free agency and having to sign a professional tryout contract (PTO) with the Utah Hockey Club.
He was able to perform well through training camp and earn himself a two-way NHL contract. After starting the year in Utah, he was put on waivers and assigned to their AHL club, the Tucson Roadrunners. There he impressed, scoring 20 goals and 36 assists for 56 points in 54 games earning himself a call-up to end the year. In total, he played 12 games scoring two goals and an assist for three points.
The 26 year old forward’s performance was not glamorous and he will have to battle for a spot but he was re-signed with the now named Utah Mammoth on a one-year two-way contract again. It is still an uphill battle for the former Oiler but he has shown resiliency and a willingness to battle throughout this process, hopefully for his sake the once former top prospect can claw his way back to a permanent NHL role.