There were 5 games in NHL action last night. Tavares, Staal, Steen, and Toffoli were game leaders in Corsi differential. Brian Campbell continued to quietly go about his excellent puck possession ways, leading all vs. Toronto. Oh, and Tryamkin was absolutely bombed. Again.

Before scrolling to the Game Charts, the usual on how they work:

A couple of notes on reading the charts:

• the Corsi differential is based on 5v5 play and is score-adjusted, as per war-on-ice.
• players at the top (with bars extending to the right) posted positive differentials (good)
• players at the bottom (and to the left) posted negative differentials (bad)
• the colour of each bar represents the player’s time on ice (see legend at the bottom)
• each players individual Corsi For attempts are included in parentheses
  • a player with a strong C +/- but a (0) for iCF didn’t directly contribute to his strong showing.
  • a player with a weak C +/- but a strong iCF score (i.e. greater than 5) may have been hindered by linemates. Maybe.
• like any reasonable person, I don’t believe that Corsi is everything. But it’s a very important part of the everything.

Now, on with the charts…

Tavares led all and Okposo was strong, posting 6 iCF. Hedman continued to try to carry the Lightning’s defense corps in the wake of Stralman’s injury, registering 6 iCF and a positive overall differential.

Except for Jason Garrison (~-11), no skater stood out in a major way for a negative puck possession totally. Sadly for Shane Prince apologists, the young former Sens skater continue his negative ways in NYI. He was an advanced stats darling in Ottawa but that hasn’t translated to the Islanders so far.

A good night for anyone with a -Sta(a)l sound in their name. Marc Staal led, Eric Staal managed a positive Corsi +/- (rare since joining NYR), and Stalberg mustered 7 iCF.

Prout’s play stalled the most as he posted a game-worst ~-16 in Corsi Differential.

On the bright side for CBJ, Savard managed a game-high 8 iCF.

Campbell is well-loved by advanced stats fans. Though his contract has never been team-friendly, his quietly excellent and calming puck play has steadied the Panthers blue line over the past couple of seasons. He led the way in this game.

The usuals for FLA filed their positive Corsi +/-…Jokinen and Smith were among the leaders, Jagr was a positive, and Kindl continues to be a net plus puck possession player for the Panthers.

A couple of Leafs took it on the chin. Defense-oriented Gauthier accumulated a negative Corsi differential of ~-15. Marincin, Laich, and Corrado weren’t far behind.

Alex Steen was the game’s best and he’s looked very fresh since returning from injury. He’s a key cog at forward for an underrated St. Louis Blues team looking to atone for past playoffs failures.

Tarasenko led all with 7 iCF (typical) and Edmundson and Parayko continued their great run of positive Corsi differentials.

At the other end, Connauton and Martinook struggled most. It’s been a long season of puck chasing for Arizona – Coyotes fans can only hope that their poor puck play results in a hometown boy suiting up for the club next season.

Toffoli led and is almost always around the top of the game charts. Jeff Carter and Drew Doughty created 6 iCF each to lead the way. Muzzin actually managed a slightly negative differential in this one, which is interesting and odd.

For the Canucks, this forgettable season can’t end soon enough. Even with the win, the obvious puck management problems plagued the team. Tryamkin was totally destroyed, Hutton and Dorsett were terrible too, and even the Sedins have been sucked into the puck-chasing vortex.

One wonders if Benning will be the man tasked with fixing this roster.

Read more…

NHL Game Charts – Sunday, April 3

NHL Game Charts – Saturday, April 2