Mathieu Perreault's Faceoffs

by Marshall Pirate on Mar 31, 2010 10:38 AM EDT

-Mathieu Perreault continues to make his case: he already has as many goals (4) and points (9) this season as Alexandre Giroux has in his entire NHL career. I think I know which one won't be recalled again this year.

Perreault already knows how to celebrate like a pro.

-We'll need Boyd Gordon's 60.1% faceoff win percentage come playoff time. After Gordon and 4th line center David Steckel (59.7%, 609 of 1020), the Capitals faceoff leaders are Brendan Morrison (51.2%, 486 of 948) and Nicklas Backstrom (49.9%, 620 of 1242). Yikes.

-Since coming to the Capitals, Eric Belanger has won only 48.9% (69 of 141) of his faceoffs, which is in stark contrast to the 57.6% he won in Minnesota. Mathieu Perreault, by comparison, has won 45.2 % (90 of 199), which sits him right between Brooks Laich (45.7%, 150 of 328) and Tomas Fleischmann (43.6%, 143 of 328).

-Speaking of Mathieu Perreault's faceoffs, he sits 15th among NHL rookies in Faceoff Wins and Faceoffs Taken, but he's 9th in winning percentage among those 15 rookies who have taken at least 170 faceoffs. In fact, among all rookies who have taken 170 or more faceoffs, only two have won more than 50% of their draws, and the average winning percentage for the 14 rookies who have taken more faceoffs than Perreault is 45.9%. Think Perreault's winning percentage is looking that bad now?

-For comparison, here are some notable NHL players and their faceoff winning percentage as a rookie:
*Vincent Lecavalier, 40.3% (384 of 953), wins 52.8% this season
*Sidney Crosby, 45.5% (534 of 1174), wins 56% this season
*Mike Richards, 45.7% (418 of 914), wins 50.7% this season
*Olli Jokinen, 43.9% (342 of 779), wins 48.8% this season
*Manny Malhotra, 43.9% (258 of 558), wins 62.4% this season

If this FanPost is written by someone other than one of the blog's editors, the opinions expressed in it do not necessarily reflect those of this blog or SB Nation.

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Good research. :-)

Blog: I Rock the Red
Twitter: @IRockTheRed
E-mail: irockthered {at} gmail {dot} com

by IRockTheRed on Mar 31, 2010 10:41 AM EDT reply actions

Thanks

I think he needs to work on his faceoffs going forward, but I’m not concerned for him right now.

Following the Caps at A Capital Offense.

by Marshall Pirate on Mar 31, 2010 10:42 AM EDT up reply actions

So do most of our centers, but they will. Faceoffs aren’t something you learn instantaneously.

Wish I could find his AHL FO%… I just e-mailed info@theahl.com to see if they track that anywhere. They may not…

Blog: I Rock the Red
Twitter: @IRockTheRed
E-mail: irockthered {at} gmail {dot} com

by IRockTheRed on Mar 31, 2010 10:46 AM EDT up reply actions

Here’s a post I made earlier this year after I found some pictures of Matty P at work:

Anatomy of a Faceoff

Natty posted some links in the comments that are pretty cool as well.

Now helping to keep an eye on all things Gr8 at Alex Ovetjkin.

by EmilyB on Mar 31, 2010 11:28 AM EDT reply actions

I’d love to see MP get the 3rd line C next year. If he can keep up this play, then he’d be a great asset for this team. He kinda burned out in his first call-up, lets hope it doesn’t happen again, although he’ll probably be back on the farm soon with guys coming back from injury.

But if BB gives him a chance at one of those spots, it’d be a great battle.

by hockeyman33 on Mar 31, 2010 11:42 AM EDT reply actions

He stopped putting up points, but I don’t think he stopped making things happen on the ice.

My ability to post is only surpassed by my ability to pinch pennies.

by jordanDC on Mar 31, 2010 2:54 PM EDT up reply actions

There is no doubt he will improve as he plays more at the NHL level. If he puts on 10 pounds of muscle in his chest and arms, he should be able to get the Face off percentage above 50. By being a bit shorter, he has a leverage advantage in the circle, but he needs a little more strength to really exploit that leverage…

Let's go Caps!

by MikeL-Pivonka on Mar 31, 2010 11:59 AM EDT reply actions

Excellent point on leverage. IMO, speed is just as important as strength and his hands are plenty quick. Is it wrong for me to think of Doug Gilmour when I look at Matty P? Maybe, but a man can dream, dammit…

Driving under the influence of hockey since godknow's when.

by bigonetimer on Mar 31, 2010 2:58 PM EDT up reply actions

Gilmour is bigger and a little tougher, but I like some of the parallels. Both are guys that seem to have obvious flaws but get the most out of their game and play with no fear.

Killer_Carlson and Steckel Me Elmo are like brothers to me. And when I say brothers I don't mean like actual brothers. I mean it like how black people use it, which is more meaningful, I think.

by Rob Parker on Mar 31, 2010 4:01 PM EDT up reply actions

Good work. There’s a bunch of takeaway stuff. Yeah, MP is bad on the dot, but not as bad as Flash. Given his production and better FO% I say there is no reason for Flash to play C again. But maybe Flash should be treated as a rookie C for these purposes. I still hate him at C.

Maybe Belanger just needs to get used to the EC Centers.

Oli Jokinen should be ashamed of himself.

Killer_Carlson and Steckel Me Elmo are like brothers to me. And when I say brothers I don't mean like actual brothers. I mean it like how black people use it, which is more meaningful, I think.

by Rob Parker on Mar 31, 2010 1:10 PM EDT reply actions

Do you want the moustache on or off?

Olli should be most ashamed of is shaving off the moustache.

But yes, I would treat Flash as a rookie C, and that’s a good point about Belanger, it was something I hadn’t thought of.

Following the Caps at A Capital Offense.

by Marshall Pirate on Mar 31, 2010 1:26 PM EDT up reply actions

The stache is an improvement on his face for sure.

Killer_Carlson and Steckel Me Elmo are like brothers to me. And when I say brothers I don't mean like actual brothers. I mean it like how black people use it, which is more meaningful, I think.

by Rob Parker on Mar 31, 2010 1:36 PM EDT up reply actions

moustache baby

My ability to post is only surpassed by my ability to pinch pennies.

by jordanDC on Mar 31, 2010 2:59 PM EDT up reply actions

comparing flash and MPs faceoff numbers is a bit unfair – MP has been playing center and taking faceoffs throughout the year (and his career) and certainly has more practice at it.

but basically yeah, i agree that flash (if he plays center) should be treated as a rookie in the faceoff category at the very least

FLASH! He shoots, he scores - 22.9% of the time, anyway

by flashfangirl on Mar 31, 2010 2:59 PM EDT up reply actions

Good News

We’re not really comparing Flash and Perreault. Flash will have a job whether it’s on the wing or at center whereas Perreault will almost certainly make his way exclusively at center. Considering Flash isn’t a regular centerman, he did fairly well at faceoffs, but it’s not good enough to not hurt the team, so I think Flash will only play center in a pinch, but it’s nice to know he can.

Following the Caps at A Capital Offense.

by Marshall Pirate on Mar 31, 2010 3:42 PM EDT up reply actions

I’ve always seen FOs as a team effort. The center starts it off, but if his teammates don’t secure the puck its not really a win, is it? It could also be Belanger getting use to his linemates tendencies and behavior at the dot.

by Gin and Tonic on Mar 31, 2010 4:14 PM EDT up reply actions

The FO is definitely a team effort but the C has the biggest impact, for sure. The way people analyze FOs now is as an individual stat and there is no way that is going to change, as flawed as it is.

Killer_Carlson and Steckel Me Elmo are like brothers to me. And when I say brothers I don't mean like actual brothers. I mean it like how black people use it, which is more meaningful, I think.

by Rob Parker on Mar 31, 2010 4:50 PM EDT up reply actions

I think most of the improvement comes from experience. Over time, centers get to know the linesmen and their opposing centers. Also, the more experience you get, the less likely the linesmen are to toss you for cheating. Rod Brindamour cheats on every faceoff and gets away with it because he’s Rod Brindamour.

Over time, though, I’m a little worried about Matty’s slight build. Short guys can take faceoffs, but it’s tough to win against bigger guys if you don’t have a little more strength up top. For a comparison, look at Mike Ribeiro…

There's a fine line between arrogance and ignorance and only I manage to erase that line.

by D'ohboy on Apr 1, 2010 8:43 AM EDT reply actions

Note on that first line: Why do we keep Giroux and Aucoin? They clearly aren’t a part of this team’s future, they don’t give the Caps immediate help, and they are taking ice time from the guys that are a part of our future. I’d rather have the Bears lose with our real guys then have them win with unnessesary guys. We could give young players more ice time and therefore more development if these two guys were dumped.

by hockeyman33 on Apr 3, 2010 12:29 PM EDT reply actions

First, Hershey would never accept that arrangement. They will not just be a pro-farm. They have a lot of history and are committed to winning so telling them to accept losing won’t happen. Second, going deep in the playoffs is great for our prospects. That doesn’t happen without Giroux and Aucoin. The fact that so many of our players and prospects have Calder Cups bodes well for our future.

Killer_Carlson and Steckel Me Elmo are like brothers to me. And when I say brothers I don't mean like actual brothers. I mean it like how black people use it, which is more meaningful, I think.

by Rob Parker on Apr 4, 2010 11:52 PM EDT up reply actions