Oilers' Nail Yakupov reportedly asked for a trade before this year's deadline

Nail Yakupov reportedly wanted out of the Oilers' youth movement. According to Sports-Express writer Igor Eronko, not only did Yakupov ask for a trade, Edmonton gave the No. 1 overall pick from the 2012 NHL Draft permission to look around.

Nail Yakupov: 'I asked a trade and #Oilers gave a permission to speak to other teams, about 8 of them were interested, but smth went wrong'

— Igor Eronko (@IgorEronko) March 27, 2016

Yakupov's name has been shopped around by many over the years. With the Oilers bloated with young talent, the 22-year-old forward was often the subject of trade proposals in exchange for a veteran defenseman.

The former first overall pick hasn't found himself a home in Edmonton so far in four seasons with the team, posting 107 points in 248 games played. This season, Yakupov has just six goals and 13 assists in 56 games with an average of 15 minutes of ice time.

This, however, is the first time those rumblings have been given some weight, and the first time Yakupov himself has expressed interest in a change of scenery. While the deadline may have passed, Yakupov's name will no doubt be on the minds of many GMs come draft weekend in June.