Oilers finally have a player worthy of a No. 1 selection

Generational talent will always come off the board first. It's not often teams whiff on what's obvious. 

But winning the NHL Draft Lottery doesn't assure such an opportunity.

Sprinkled throughout the list of players chosen first overall are draftees that were always going to fall short of expectations unfairly placed on those whose fate was determined via Powerball. 

These players were Patrik Stefan and Rick DiPietro. 

And these players are now Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Nail Yakupov. 

The Edmonton Oilers won the 2015 NHL Draft Lottery and will select first for the fourth time in six seasons - much to the chagrin of the 13 teams in contention and fans of the other 16. They had an 11.5 percent chance to steal the prize from teams who deconstructed their rosters and lost on purpose for a few extra percentage points. 

And they swooped in and did it. 

But what happened throughout the season didn't for Hall, Nugent-Hopkins or Yakupov. Tanking didn't happen. 

It was the worst-case scenario, right? "Edmonton, again!?" 

But when the gold-plated logo was pulled out of the envelope, Bill Daly's smile a glorious harbinger to Oilers fans, the team was presented with their first true opportunity to select a player who will change their misfortunes. 

The Oilers haven't blown chance after chance at the draft floor. Not at all. They've just picked from what was available. 

And what was available really wasn't all that much.

Hall can be considered only a marginal misstep, if that. In their five seasons, Tyler Seguin, selected second-overall by the Boston Bruins, has scored 19 points more than Hall, but in 55 more games.

Seguin has grown into a legitimate superstar for the Dallas Stars, producing at points this season at an Hart Trophy nomination pace, while Hall has battled injuries in his five seasons.

In 2011, they chose Nugent-Hopkins. Like Hall, he's had injury problems, but is also the highest-producing point-per-game scorer from his draft. Gabriel Landeskog, second to the Colorado Avalanche is a solid player, a captain, but Nugent-Hopkins proved this season his ceiling is much higher. 

And then there's Yakupov. Sure, he was a blunder. His 88 points rank second from the draft, but exciting, impact defensemen, such as Morgan Rielly, Hampus Lindholm, Jacob Trouba and Olli Maatta, were overlooked.

Was anyone really taking them first overall, though? Maybe Brian Burke. Maybe.

It's okay to rue the result - fans and organizations should. Hell, Edmonton wasn't even playing for McDavid this season. And that's where some of the frustration is rooted.

But it's wrong to suggest the Oilers have had this chance before, and that they will "just mess it up." 

They haven't, and they won't. 

Because drafting Connor McDavid is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for an organization - one even the Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals and Tampa Bay Lightning may grow to envy.