Mike Green: Like Sandis Ozolinsh, But Good at Defense
by David M. Getz on Mar 23, 2009 12:00 PM EDT
81 comments
When it comes to Mike Green's 2008-09 season the question is no longer whether or not the young blueliner is having a great season, but rather just how great a season he's having. In terms of offensive production Green is head and shoulder above his peers in goal scoring and point production, and is a major reason the Capitals powerplay is the league's second best. Green's contributions to the Capitals success goes beyond his point production; his speed and puck-moving skills make him the team's most effective blueliner when it comes to starting the breakout and transitioning from defense into offense. The fact that Green can do it while leading the team in ice time means he also helps the team by lightening the load on the rest of the defense corps.
For all his successes Green still takes his fair share criticism for his defensive play, both from Capitals fans and around the league in general. So, just how good (or bad) of a defensive player is Green? Here's how he stacks up in what are generally considered to be defensive statistics:
[Ed note: The cutoff for the purposes of this comparison is 40 games. The Capitals have six qualifying defensemen and the league as a whole has 183.]
| Total | Rank (Capitals) | Rank (NHL) | |
| Games | 60 | 3rd | t-112th |
| ATOI | 25:45 | 1st | 6th |
| Plus-Minus | 23 | 1st | 10th |
| BTN Rating* | 1.32 | 1st | 6th |
| +- ON/60** | 1.43 | 1st | 1st |
| Blocked Shots |
92 | t-2nd | 79th |
| Hits | 75 | 4th | 81st |
| Corsi** | 17.4 | 1st | 3rd |
| GAON/60** | 2.02 | 3rd | 35th |
| GFON/60** | 3.45 | 1st | 3rd |
| 4-on-5 GA/60*** |
2.48 | 1st | 3rd |
| Penalties Taken/60** | 1.4 | t-2nd | t-151st |
| Penalties Drawn/60** | 0.8 | 1st | t-12th |
| Penalty Diff./60** | 0.6 | t-4th | t-108th |
| Takeaways | 46 | 1st | 5th |
| Giveaways | 88 | 6th | 182nd |
| Qual. Comp.** |
0.02 | t-2nd | t-58th |
| Qual Team.** | 0.10 | 2nd | t-27th |
*BTN Rating is Behind the Net rating, a statistic that compares plus-minus while accounting for team quality. **Data for these statistics is only available for 5-on-5 situations. ***Statistic is only for players who have played at least 40 games and average two minutes or more on 4-on-5 time per game; there are 110 qualifying players for this statistic.
Of course, all hockey statistics ought to be taken a grain of salt, and defensive statistics with a bigger grain than most. For example, Green has the league's best even strength goal differential in large part because he has the third highest GFON/60 score in the league, which is in part because he plays on such an offensively gifted team, and has so many takeaways because the Verizon Center is notoriously generous when it comes to crediting them. But while the numbers might not tell the whole truth, or may even mislead, they don't lie - the Verizon's Center's liberal giveaway and takeaway policy means that that Green gets credited with an awful lot of giveaways as well (his adjusted giveaway number is in the low 50's), and Green is in the top quintile when it comes to GAON/60, so not all of the goal differential comes from offensive production. As for the penalties...well, there's not much to say about the penalties. Green simply takes too many.
But then no one ever said Green was an elite defensive defenseman, and despite all his talents - the speed, the quickness, the agility, the puck-handling skills, the anticipation - Green is still a twenty-three year old learning how to play defense in the National Hockey League. But even given the occasional bad decision or misplayed puck, it's awfully hard to argue that a guy who's in the top twenty percent of the league in plus-minus, BTN rating, Cosri, goals for per sixty, goals against per sixty, goal differential per sixty, and takeaways isn't pulling his weight defensively. So, while Green's offense will probably always outshine his defense, try taking a closer look at what he's doing in his own end. You might end up being pleasantly surprised.
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There is a narrative that NHL commentators buy into when they haven’t seen a guy play a lot — and even sometimes when they have: If he’s good in the offensive-zone, he MUST be bad in the defensive zone. Especially when he’s 23.
Well, you’ve proved that narrative is broken. And that those who perpetuate it (Versus, TSN, CBC-types…) are lazy mouthpieces.
by TylerG on Mar 23, 2009 12:04 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Sometimes the best defense is a good offense, and Green seems to prove that. And I buy that he’s better defensively than he’s given credit for, but which of those numbers you cite aren’t significantly aided by his offensive ability AND are impressive? 35th in GAON/60? A good rank, to be sure, but throw in the number of five-on-five penalties that he takes (a bunch of which no doubt have resulted in goals on the ensuing PP and no doubt are the result themselves of poor positioning or some other defensive shortcoming), and I’m not quite there yet in terms of buying him as truly defensively responsible.
To be clear, however, the total package is an overwhelming positive.
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by J.P. on Mar 23, 2009 12:12 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Here’s my take on Mike Green:
He has everything that you can’t teach, and he has it in spades. Speed, offensive skills, hockey sense. I don’t care how long you practice, you won’t get hugely better at those kinds of things.
He’s missing some things that experienced defensemen learn. He’s also 23. Those can come in time.
Bottom line is that the biggest risk to Mike Green in his career is simply his own motivation level. He could stop growing as a player right now and be darned good for 10-15 years. Or he could keep working at it constantly and be a hall of famer. He has the skills to be one of the best 2-way defenders of all time.
by Gould Old Days on Mar 23, 2009 1:26 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Agreed. He could/should be Scott Niedermayer with a better shot.
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by J.P. on Mar 23, 2009 1:28 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Also agree, but I think Scott Niedermayer is almost setting the bar low for his growth potential.
by Yoshietree on Mar 23, 2009 1:52 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Agreed. Green has way more upside than Niedermayer. For all his skills, Niedermayer has never cracked 20 goals and his highest point total was 69. Niedermayer is a great skater, but to my eyes, Green is more explosive, particularly with the puck. (Although maybe I’m saying this because I’ve only been watching Scotty the Greybeard lately.) Green’s also larger physically, and over the last few weeks, we’ve seen him start delivering more hits.
by D'ohboy on Mar 23, 2009 2:03 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
1) Scotty played a lot of years on the defense first NJ Devils who to this time still have yet to ice a 100 point player in their history!
by Fauxrumors on Mar 23, 2009 3:17 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I don’t know if you’re planning on continuing this or not, but the idea that the Devils were offensively inept is a fallacy. During Niedermayer’s heyday with the Devils (I’ll use 97-98 until the lockout) here were NJ’s Goals For total, followed by their league rank in parentheses.
97-98: 225 (9th)
98-99: 248 (2nd)
99-00: 251 (2nd)
00-01: 295 (1st)
01-02: 205 (21st)
02-03: 216 (14th)
03-04: 213 (14th)
They trailed off there after Arnott, Sykora and Nieuwendyk left, but still, for four years, they were one of the better offensive teams in the league and put up goal totals that the (supposedly) offensive Caps of 08-09 will have a hard time matching.
For comparison’s sake, his best year was 06-07 with Anaheim (15/54/69). That year Anaheim scored 254 goals which tied them for 8th/9th with Toronto.
Green has more offensive upside than Niedermayer.
by D'ohboy on Mar 23, 2009 3:56 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Faux: pwnd
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by J.P. on Mar 23, 2009 3:58 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
1) Scotty played a dozen years in NJ and 1-2 years of a decent offensive production in those 12 years isn’t much.
2) Its still a very telling stat that no Devil has ever scored 100 points in a season
by Fauxrumors on Mar 23, 2009 5:03 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
As for no Devil ever scoring 100 points, I would argue that it’s not an important statistic. The Devils have had a lot of good players, but no superstars, at least none that spend most of their time on white ice. Moreover, the Devils only became a respectable franchise once scoring had come down from its dizzying coke-fueled 80s high.
Plus, I think Parise is going to make that stat moot rather soon.
Green scored 18 goals last year and 56 points altogether. That would have been Niedermayer’s 4th best season ever, and more than 1/3 of those games were played under Hanlon’s creativity-crushing defensive system. That’s more goals than Niedermayer has ever scored in a year. In what amounts to his 3rd full season in the league, Green needs only 5 more points to best Niedermayer’s highest point total of his career: 69 (in 79 games). And he’ll do it in a maximum of 68 games.
Niedermayer is a great defenseman and a sweet skater. Green may still be, well, Green, and there’s always the possibility that he won’t reach his full potential. But right now, it’s fairly obvious that Green has more offensive upside. Actually I think that statement is conservative. I think it’s easy to argue that Green is straight-up better offensively than Niedermayer.
by D'ohboy on Mar 23, 2009 7:29 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
So why the F did they have to trap!!!
by Fehr and Balanced on Mar 23, 2009 4:11 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
growth potential… aaaawwwwww, but I want it now!!
by Scofield on Mar 23, 2009 2:35 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Here is a classic case of where statistics tell you something your eyes can’t, and vice versa. Green can be caught lolly-gagging in the defensive zone once in a while, standing stationary in front of his own net, and not picking up an open man in the slot. Often I think he’s a victim of along shift or too much TOI.
But taken as a whole, the numbers clearly demonstrate that those few miscues are far outweighed by the fact that the Caps are rarely even playing defense when he is on the ice. And likewise, those statistics don’t make up for the fact that, once in a while, Green’s lack of effort defensively cost us goals.
The keyboard is mightier.
by breed16 on Mar 23, 2009 12:26 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Here is a classic case of where statistics tell you something your eyes can’t, and vice versa.
I agree. Defensive statistics aren’t the best, especially when they’re skewed like they are in Green’s case and frankly, I think they paint an overly flattering picture of the guy. Still, like most defensemen, Green’s a not more noticeable when he makes mistakes and I think that some of what he does well defensively gets lost behind his mistakes and the offensive production.
I think the effort was a major problem early in the season, but got much better in early-mid November.
by David M. Getz on Mar 23, 2009 12:35 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
He got better as the season wore on, but he dropped off again right after his goal-scoring streak ended. He was God-awful in his own end for about two weeks. Apparently, this coincided with some kind of bug that he contracted (per Tarik). Regardless, he looked totally listless. He seems to have recovered somewhat of late.
by D'ohboy on Mar 23, 2009 1:33 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
The Caps as a team, but particularly the “Young Guns” need to get more disciplined about shift length. So many goals against and penalties are the result of Ovie/Green/Semin shifts that are well over one minute. One in particular that comes to mind was the first goal by the Thrashers a few games ago. Ovie, Backis and Kozlov (or was it Semin?) had an epic shift in the offensive end at around the 10 minute mark. They had several great chances, hit a couple of posts and held the puck in Atlanta’s end for over 30 seconds. Too bad they didn’t get off the ice then, because they were gassed when they got back to their own end. The result? They stood around watching with legs full of lactic acid as the Thrashers took the lead and didn’t look back.
by D'ohboy on Mar 23, 2009 1:31 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
I think the effort was a major problem early in the season, but got much better in early-mid November
This goes along with Tyler’s statement that NHL observers tend to say an offensive player must be bad defensively.
At the beginning of the season, Green was still a liability in his own end, but now he’s been particularly solid. That’s not counting the numerous times that Green has chased down a player on a breakaway, and stopped the play cleanly.
Offensive sells tickets but defense wins games. Green’s point of sale is his offensive play, but as you pointed out, his all-around game is maturing and getting to where the Caps want it to be.
by CapitalsKremlin on Mar 23, 2009 12:45 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Apparently VCU journalism professors read OFB.
by TylerG on Mar 23, 2009 1:06 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Hah!
One of my journalism teachers held conferences with outgoing senior journalism majors to discuss the job market. When I took my clips from the Times-Dispatch, Progress-Index and some clips from CK, I was told “don’t waste your time working on a blog, do something worthwhile, it’s not like blogs publish anything worthwhile.”
And some people in the industry wonder why kids don’t want to be writers anymore…
by CapitalsKremlin on Mar 23, 2009 1:12 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Green’s defense has improved dramatically (hugely? greatly?) over the course of the season. Early on, when people outside this blog were beginning to talk about a potential Norris Trophy, I disagreed and said that he still needed improving in his own end.
I’m glad to say that I don’t think that way nearly as much anymore.
I have as many wins in a Capitals uniform as Michael Belhumeur does.
by marky narc on Mar 23, 2009 1:33 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Offensive sells tickets but defense wins games.
Minnesota would beg to differ. Crap offense – great defense. Won’t make the playoffs – sell out every game.
On the reverse, take Detroit. Amazing offense – (relatively) poor defense. On pace for over 110 points – can’t sell out in Hockeytown, not even for the playoffs.
I see what you’re getting at, but the whole offense=tickets/defense=championships is one cliche that definitely needs retiring.
by D'ohboy on Mar 23, 2009 1:45 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Statistically speaking, the only study I’ve seen on the issue found that team success had a statistically significant impact on attendance, but offensive ability did not.
by David M. Getz on Mar 23, 2009 1:46 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Unless it’s the Devils, in which case, nobody wants to watch. ;)
by D'ohboy on Mar 23, 2009 1:51 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Seriously though, underlying market demand and team success are the real drivers of ticket sales. Toronto is so nuts for the Leafs that they could sell out even if they iced a team as bad as the 03-04 Caps. Conversely, the economy is so depressed in Detroit that they can’t afford to go to games, even if they want to.
In a broader sense, I’m not a fan of cliches like this because I think they’re misleading, and I think it’s the job of places like this, From the Rink, Behind the Net, the Forechecker, et. al. to break these hockey cliches down in much the way that Bill James and the SABR diaspora have done for baseball.
by D'ohboy on Mar 23, 2009 1:57 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Here’s a question to think about.
If the Capitals were a defensive minded team with a world class goalie and a smattering of capable offensive talent, would they sell out games and generate the level of excitement they have now?
by CapitalsKremlin on Mar 23, 2009 2:18 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
If they were winning at the rate they are now, yes. They might not have quite the same “vibe” surrounding the team, but that’s not to say they wouldn’t be popular. To use a historical example, the Late 70’s Lunchpail Gang Bruins were every bit as popular in Boston as the early 70s powerhouse teams with Orr and Esposito (perhaps even moreso). Bruins fans loved Stan Jonathon and Terry O’Reilly, just for different reasons than they loved Orr and Espo.
Closer to home, last year, with almost the same roster of skilled offensive players, the Caps stank up the joint to start the season. There were some mid-week games against SE division foes where attendance was well under 10,000, regardless of what they announced.
As soon as the Caps started winning, the fans came back. In droves. Now I can hardly get a beer during a game because it’s so damn crowded.
by D'ohboy on Mar 23, 2009 2:28 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I agree with that, but I don’t think that the hype around the team would be nearly as big as it is now. Ovechkin draws the fans, and then if they get caught up in the team, they move on to supporting other players.
by CapitalsKremlin on Mar 23, 2009 2:43 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
D’ohboy’s right – winning is what matters more than all else.
This team drew great with stars like Peter Bondra and Olie Kolzig when they were winning, and drew for crap in AO’s first couple of years in the League when they were losing.
Of course, there are other factors involved (i.e. coming out of the lockout), but if this team was headed back to Lotteryville right now and losing 6-4 every night, no one would show up, while if they were winning 2-1 every night with no AO, new heroes (namely the goalie) would emerge.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
by J.P. on Mar 23, 2009 3:01 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Everyone loves a winner, there’s no doubt about it.
by CapitalsKremlin on Mar 23, 2009 3:02 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I think that pretty much sums it up. What I was trying to get at with suggesting that the “vibe” would be different is that the marketing and aura around the team would probably be different. I think people would be excited, just in a different way.
I would wager that the team would probably get less media coverage without incandescent stars like Ovie, Green, Backstrom and Semin. Add that with the fact that they “grew up” together in the system with guys like Laich, Mo, Schultz, etc. and you’ve got a pretty potent marketing/media hype mix.
by D'ohboy on Mar 23, 2009 4:02 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Another “X” factor here is the total suckitude of the rest of the Washington sports landscape. Sure, AO would command a spotlight in any market at any time. And Boudreau is a good story and great on camera.
But the Caps certainly are benefiting in coverage and at the gate by the puke-worthiness of the town’s other options.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
by J.P. on Mar 23, 2009 4:07 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Good example of this is the 98 Cup run. Sure the team had “stars” (Bondra, Kolzig, Hunter, et al), but the following season it was more of the same ol’ same ol’…empty seats until after the Skins season was over.
Last year’s run to the playoffs ignited something that I’ve never seen in the DC sports landscape…and to me that’s directly attributed to OV’s star power and him being pronounced one of the top two (if not #1) talents in the league.
by Yoshietree on Mar 23, 2009 5:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
As a relative newcomer to the DC sports scene from points west, I’ll take your word on this. Other than DC United, I don’t follow the other DC teams. I do think that the personalities of the Caps help fans to engage with them. Also, having a media-savvy, proactive/interactive owner who has been through a down-cycle definitely helps. I can’t stress that last point enough, just look at the catastrophuck that is the Avalanche right now. Fans are leaving that team in droves, not just because they suck, but also because the owner doesn’t care and they’re forced to watch/listen to all the games on fully-team-owned media outlets.
by D'ohboy on Mar 23, 2009 7:37 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
JP: Do you have that link to data on how good a PKer 52 is? His GAON 4-on-5?
by TylerG on Mar 23, 2009 1:00 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I don’t know if they have someone who keeps track of it, but I wonder if someone has a link to see a players Goals For and Goals Against by period. Kinda like Yahoo’s breakdown of goals scored by period for a player. Would be interesting to see, but I can probably think of the team “leaders” in goals against by period without seeing it.
by CapitalsKremlin on Mar 23, 2009 1:05 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
It’s the best on the team. Link.
by David M. Getz on Mar 23, 2009 1:13 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Beat you to it, D (yet yours is time-stamped earlier… odd).
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
by J.P. on Mar 23, 2009 1:15 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
It happens. Mine showed mine showing up first. Crazy SBN.
by David M. Getz on Mar 23, 2009 1:17 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I had never seen that site before, thank you. I’m going to have to dissect it and learn from it.
by CapitalsKremlin on Mar 23, 2009 1:15 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
You must not follow our links that often, then.
by David M. Getz on Mar 23, 2009 1:18 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I follow quite a few links from the posts, but I haven’t seen that one, or I just don’t remember it. It’s not a particularly eye grabbing site. For the most part, I’m reading the rink while I’m in class, so I’m half paying attention while working on other things.
by CapitalsKremlin on Mar 23, 2009 1:23 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I'm offended
My “defense of Eric Fehr” post was just a complete list of BTN links…and yet, noone notices. Screw you guys, I’m going home!
by wittcap79 on Mar 23, 2009 4:28 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
His GAON/60 4-on-5 is best on the team. It’s also 3rd-best in the NHL among guys with 50 games played and 2 minutes of SH TOI per game.
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by J.P. on Mar 23, 2009 1:14 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Guess it begs a question – if the Caps have a one-goal lead with a minute left in a playoff game, which two D do you want out there?
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by J.P. on Mar 23, 2009 1:19 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Shorthanded or even strength?
ES I’ll take Schultz and Poti. Shorthanded, Poti and Green.
by David M. Getz on Mar 23, 2009 1:20 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Why is 55 > 52 at ES but not SH?
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by J.P. on Mar 23, 2009 1:29 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Schultz’s lack of quickness worries me 4-on-5.
by David M. Getz on Mar 23, 2009 1:34 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
But we like his reach and his ability to get his stick into lanes.
by TylerG on Mar 23, 2009 1:34 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I think I’m with DMG. But I’ll throw out one other scenario: If the Caps are up one goal with a PP with a minute left… I want Green and either Schultz or Poti. Point being: I want two D on the ice there. And if WSH plays PHL in the playoffs, I’d like to see some more 2D PP. Doesn’t look like Gabby agrees or he’d be ‘testing’ it right now.
by TylerG on Mar 23, 2009 1:23 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I’d replace one of those guys with Fedorov, unless he’s the one taking the draw.
by D'ohboy on Mar 23, 2009 1:27 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
If the opposition pulls the goalie, I want Green out there. He’s lethal. Nothing ends a game quickly like an empty netter.
by Gould Old Days on Mar 23, 2009 1:27 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Poti and Green with an EN. Definitely.
by CapitalsKremlin on Mar 23, 2009 1:30 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I thought Boyd Gordon was the master of shooting it into an empty net. :)
Nevermind, he’s on IR….
I have as many wins in a Capitals uniform as Michael Belhumeur does.
by marky narc on Mar 23, 2009 1:34 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I gotta go with Schultz and Green. Green for his puck-clearing ability, Schultz because he is effective on D without taking stupid penalties. The last thing you want in that situation regardless of manpower is a stupid penalty.
"It is better to die on your feet than to live on your knees." - Delores Ibarruri
by gotsparkly on Mar 23, 2009 1:32 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
It’s a measure of how far Morrisonn has fallen that his name doesn’t even appear on this list. I’m just guessing that the result might have been different had you asked this question this time last year.
by D'ohboy on Mar 23, 2009 1:50 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Mo’s play has picked up recently, since Pothier has returned. Seems to be playing more physical. It’s about time.
The keyboard is mightier.
by breed16 on Mar 23, 2009 2:00 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
True. I liked his hit on Jokinen the other night. I thought the interference call was BS – I don’t care if he didn’t touch the puck, he was right next to it and put his stick near it, that makes him fair game.
by D'ohboy on Mar 23, 2009 2:05 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I said exactly that to the TV when I saw that. Its a timing play that could have gone the other way half the time.
by Sct112 on Mar 23, 2009 2:07 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
One of many calls that were strange that night. Still, I’m willing to give refs some leeway on the quick plays like the Morrisonn penalty. I’m not willing to give them leeway on that BS Mike Green roughing call at the end of the game. That one developed slowly and in clear view of everyone. Pitkanen went after Green clear as day. Even if the refs wanted to get Green for retaliating, they still should’ve given Pitkanen two more for roughing. Totally crap officiating. . . Still, the Caps deserved to lose that one.
(Coincidentally, none of these calls were as bad as the phantom handball against DC United yesterday. Ugh.)
by D'ohboy on Mar 23, 2009 2:13 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Rec’d for the United shoutout.
"I didn't down a half bottle of Firefly and 4 arena beers for that type of performance."
by Bald Pollack on Mar 23, 2009 3:29 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
DMG you read my mind
During the last game, I was watching Green go behind the net with the puck and I thought, “Man, he reminds me a lot of Sandis, except he’s not wasted 80% of the time and he actually pays some attention to defense.”
It’s kind of a shame that dude drank his way out of the NHL. I loved watching him with the Avs during the 90s, even with the putrid defense.
by D'ohboy on Mar 23, 2009 1:37 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Made up a stat using BTN a while back...
Something you might want to include in future defensive discussions if you want.
(Goals Against, 5on5, On ice/60) – (Goals Against, 5 on 5, OFF ice/60)
Positive number bad. Negative number good.
To me it says, are more goals scored with him on the ice or off the ice. Sure, this ignores matchups. There’s probably a way to normalize based on Qual Comp but I don’t have the time to do it. Maybe someone else here would like to take it and run with it.
Min 30 games:
Name, (GAON-GAOFF), QualComp
ERSKINE, -1.12, -0.05
SHAMOO, -0.07, 0.01
JUICE, -0.5, -0.03
GREEN, -0.2, 0.02
SCHULTZ, 0.24, 0.02
POTI, 0.59, 0.08
ALZNER, 1.13, 0.00
Interesting note. Juice and Skin are the only caps with negative quality comp ratings. Juice’s is probably higher than 4’s cause of his time spent with 27.
by FFSEnough on Mar 23, 2009 2:25 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Completely off-the-Green-topic
Is anyone else worried about how Ovechkin isn’t scoring many goals in games we don’t win? The Caps are something like ALOT-ALITTLE-NOTMANY when he scores a goal. Does it seem like he’s relying way too much on his teammates? If they’re not playing well, then neither is he? This is a disturbing trend that I’ve noticed.
And, actually, I’ll clarify – it’s not that Ovechkin isn’t playing well when the team isn’t, it’s that he doesn’t seem to work his usual “the-other-team-shits-their-pants” magic by himself. There aren’t too many games where Ovechkin isn’t playing well, but there have been a number of games where he hasn’t seemed all that effective – Saturday, for example. He had an assist, but didn’t do a whole lot else.
by DrinkingPartner on Mar 23, 2009 3:01 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
That point migh be mute if the Caps had reliable secondary scoring
by Fauxrumors on Mar 23, 2009 3:19 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
They’re really probably better in that department than most teams.
by David M. Getz on Mar 23, 2009 4:24 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
What would reliable secondary scoring have to do with one of the Caps’ power play defenseman’s inability to speak?
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
by J.P. on Mar 23, 2009 4:27 PM EDT up reply actions 2 recs
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
by J.P. on Mar 23, 2009 5:19 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Sorry, I just have a bad habit of grammar correction
by SethB on Mar 23, 2009 5:39 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
You were the guy that called me the spelling gestapo…. glass houses SethB :)
by Sct112 on Mar 23, 2009 6:10 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
indeed, but I did spell diminutive correctly! I’m the grammar gestapo to your spelling ss
by SethB on Mar 23, 2009 6:34 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
It’s early in his career but I certainly hope the Green turns out being better than Ozolinsh.
never let the truth get in the way of a good story
by toymechanic on Mar 23, 2009 5:25 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
All he has to do is lay off the sauce.
by D'ohboy on Mar 23, 2009 7:41 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I’m soryy, but ON/60 = ?
If at first you don't succeed, don't try parachuting.
by hotdog88gt on Mar 23, 2009 5:34 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
ON/60 is when the dude’s on the ice per sixty minutes of (in this case five-on-five) ice time.
For example, if a guy played exactly 10 minutes of 5-on-5 time for the game and there were two goals scored against and one for during that time, he’d have a 6 GFON/60 and a 12 GAON/60.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
by J.P. on Mar 23, 2009 5:42 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Sorry, I missed the plus/minus ON/60 that stopped me…I did not notice the +-
If at first you don't succeed, don't try parachuting.
by hotdog88gt on Mar 23, 2009 5:57 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
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Southeast Standings
| GP | W | L | OTL | PT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Washington
|
72 | 48 | 14 | 10 | 106 |
|
Atlanta
|
72 | 32 | 29 | 11 | 75 |
|
Florida
|
71 | 29 | 31 | 11 | 69 |
|
Carolina
|
72 | 30 | 34 | 8 | 68 |
|
Tampa Bay
|
72 | 28 | 32 | 12 | 68 |
(updated 3.21.2010 at 10:53 PM EDT)
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