Not only has Ty Rattie made it, he has it made, right?
Rattie had 11 points (seven goals, four assists) in four preseason games. When the Edmonton Oilers play the Boston Bruins at TD Garden on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; NESN, SNOL, TVAS, NHL.TV), he'll be the right wing on the top line with back-to-back NHL scoring champion Connor McDavid.
It's an incredible opportunity for a 25-year-old who has played 50 NHL games over six seasons.
But that's all it is: an opportunity.
"Once you get that chance, you can't let it go," said Rattie, who had two shots on goal in 19:13 in the Oilers' season opener: a 5-2 loss to the New Jersey Devils at Scandinavium in Gothenburg, Sweden, on Saturday in the 2018 Global Series. "You've got to keep going. You can't let somebody take your spot."
Rattie thought he'd made it two years ago too. After three seasons mostly with Chicago of the American Hockey League, he started the season with the St. Louis Blues. He played one game. And then …
He was scratched for nine games, sent to the minors, brought back up and scratched for two. He played one game, was scratched for two games, played two and was scratched for 14. And then …
He was claimed on waivers by the Carolina Hurricanes on Jan. 4, 2017. He played three games, was scratched for five, played two and was scratched for seven. And then …
He was claimed on waivers by the Blues on Feb. 19, 2017, and sent to the minors. In the end, he played 31 games that season, with two points (two assists) in nine NHL games with St. Louis and Carolina and five points (two goals, three assists) in 22 AHL games with Chicago. Hotels were his home.
"I started the year so high, realizing I made the NHL," Rattie said. " 'I'm here. I'm ready to win.' And then to go through all the ups and downs, it was tough. … It was a long, long year. It was definitely a learning experience, just kind of telling yourself, 'Don't give up. You're a good player.'"
Rattie spent most of last season with the Oilers' AHL affiliate, Bakersfield, and had 43 points (21 goals, 22 assists) in 53 games. But he got an opportunity late in the season when the Oilers called him up and put him with McDavid, and he seized it with nine points (five goals, four assists) in 12 games.
Skill and smarts have never been Rattie's problem. The Blues selected him in the second round (No. 32) of the 2011 NHL Draft. He put up big numbers with Portland of the Western Hockey League: 121 points (57 goals, 64 assists) in 69 games in 2011-12, and 110 points (48 goals, 62 assists) in 62 games in 2012-13. He scored 31 goals his first season in the AHL.
The problem has been conditioning and consistency. Rattie said he switched gyms and skated twice as much as he ever had before over the summer. Apparently it paid off. After Rattie had a hat trick in a 6-0 preseason win against the Vancouver Canucks on Sept. 25, McDavid said: "Credit to his offseason. I think he's added another step as well."
"This game is so much about confidence," Rattie said. "And just having that confidence going into this season that I can be here, I can contribute every night, it's nice."
When was the last time he felt like this?
"I felt this confident in the NHL? Never," Rattie said. "As a hockey player? Probably back to the junior days, kind of when the puck was bouncing your way and you were scoring a lot. I know you're not going to score like that every single game, so I've got to keep an even keel and realize if I'm not scoring, I've got to do something else to contribute to the team."
Rattie has been playing with two No. 1 picks: McDavid, the No. 1 pick of the 2015 NHL Draft, and left wing Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, the No. 1 pick of the 2011 NHL Draft. His job is to go the hard areas, win battles, keep plays alive, get the puck to his linemates and get open so they can find him. Sometimes it's to get out of the way, especially for McDavid.
"He can beat guys by himself, and he draws so much attention," Rattie said of McDavid. "If you crowd him and he beats somebody, if you're right beside him, it's useless. So spread out. There's going to be a 2-on-1 somewhere."
When Rattie gets a chance, he has to bury it.
"It's hard to keep that up for 82 games," Oilers coach Todd McLellan said. "There's going to be ups and downs. But we believe he can consistently do it."
If he can, that can help the Oilers spread out their attack. Jesse Puljujarvi, the No. 4 pick in the 2016 NHL Draft, and Kailer Yamamoto, a first-round pick (No. 22) in the 2017 NHL Draft, can play right wing lower in the lineup.
"I'm grateful for the Oilers giving me a chance," Rattie said. "Now I have to prove to them I can hang onto this chance for 82 games."
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