On the Forecheck
Next entry: Eastern Conference Predictions
Previous entry: IIHF to rule in favor of Nashville
Which snipers really need their setup man?
by Forechecker on 10/02/08 at 10:53 AM ET
Comments (0)
Great offensive performers in the NHL often come in pairs; think Wayne Gretzky & Jari Kurri, or Mario Lemieux & Jaromir Jagr. When it comes to today’s prominent goal-scorers, however, which ones are the most dependent on a particular playmaker to set them up? To answer that question, I dug through the goal-scoring details from the 2007-8 season and took a look at the leading snipers, to answer the question of who fed them a Primary Assist most often…
When I examined this issue for 2006-7, the Sedin twins were the most intertwined players in the league, just barely ahead of Slava Kozlov & Marian Hossa. As Kozzie’s production tailed off in 2007-8, however, the Sedins again led the way, this time by a wide margin. The table below represents the top 20 scorers with at least 20 goals last season, ranked by their reliance upon a specific player for Primary Assists:
| Scorer | Goals | Top Assist Man | 1st Assists | Reliance |
| Daniel Sedin, VAN | 29 | Henrik Sedin | 18 | 62.1% |
| Jonathan Cheechoo, SJS | 23 | Joe Thornton | 11 | 47.8% |
| Shawn Horcoff, EDM | 21 | Ales Hemsky | 10 | 47.6% |
| Henrik Zetterberg, DET | 43 | Pavel Datsyuk | 20 | 46.5% |
| Petr Sykora, PIT | 28 | Evgeni Malkin | 13 | 46.4% |
| Brenden Morrow, DAL | 32 | Mike Ribeiro | 14 | 43.8% |
| Jochen Hecht, BUF | 22 | Jason Pominville | 9 | 40.9% |
| Joffrey Lupul, PHI | 20 | Mike Richards | 8 | 40.0% |
| Brad Boyes, STL | 43 | Paul Kariya | 17 | 39.5% |
| Bill Guerin, NYI | 23 | Mike Comrie | 9 | 39.1% |
| Andrei Kostitsyn, MTL | 26 | Tomas Plekanec | 10 | 38.5% |
| Tomas Plekanec, MTL | 29 | Alexei Kovalev | 11 | 37.9% |
| Milan Michalek, SJS | 24 | Joe Thornton | 9 | 37.5% |
| Dany Heatley, OTT | 41 | Jason Spezza | 15 | 36.6% |
| Marcus Naslund, VAN | 25 | Daniel Sedin | 9 | 36.0% |
| Martin St. Louis, TAM | 25 | Vincent Lecavalier | 9 | 36.0% |
| Jason Arnott, NSH | 28 | J. P. Dumont | 10 | 35.7% |
| Vincent Lecavalier, TAM | 40 | Martin St. Louis | 14 | 35.0% |
| Tomas Holmstrom, DET | 20 | Henrik Zetterberg | 7 | 35.0% |
| Brendan Shanahan, NYR | 23 | Scott Gomez | 8 | 34.8% |
One interesting thing that jumps out of this table is how little player movement one sees from this group. Only two scorers on this list (Marcus Naslund and Brendan Shanahan, highlighted in pink) are no longer with their team from last season, although with Shanny there’s still a possibility of a return since he’s a free agent. This makes sense, of course; if a duo is working well together there is natural resistance to breaking them up.
Note, also, the two lines highlighted in green; Tampa’s dynamic duo of Vinny Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis are doing both ends of this work for each other. And if there is any doubt as to what Joe Thornton means to the San Jose Sharks, just ask Jonathan Cheechoo and Milan Michalek, both of whom rely upon Big Bird to feed them the puck.
So as we get ready to launch this 2008-9 NHL regular season, keep an eye on your favorite team to see if preseason line combinations threaten one of these productive pairings. If they do, feel free to let the head coach know he’s taking a big risk!
Filed in: NHL Statistical Analysis | On the Forecheck | Permalink
Comments
Be the first to comment.
Add a Comment
Please limit embedded image or media size to 575 pixels wide.
Add your own avatar by joining Kukla's Korner, or logging in and uploading one in your member control panel.
Captchas bug you? Join KK or log in and you won't have to bother.
Commenting is not available in this weblog entry.
Most Recent Blog Posts
A pivotal Predators prospect: Colin Wilson
Canadian hockey team on the road to Nashville
Two recreational hockey players die on same night, at same rink
Calgary investor Brett Wilson to buy stake in the Nashville Predators
Preds enjoy a command performance
To buy or not to buy? That is the question…
About Kukla’s Korner
Kukla’s Korner is updated around the clock with the work of our own talented bloggers, plus links to the best hockey writing around the internet. We strive to bring you all the breaking hockey news as it happens.
The home page allows you to see the latest postings from every blog on the site. Subscribe here. For general inquiries and more, please contact us anytime.
Get the top online sports betting bonuses available to sports betters!
When learning from experts it’s best to learn personally from them, or from their blog. We can provide that with poker lessons blog, your home to learn poker personally.
Do you get shocked from the luck in the game of poker? Stop getting shocked and start being a Poker Shoker.
As well as reading about hockey games, you can also find info about poker like which poker sites accept American Express or which are the best Canadian poker sites and also find the top rakeback sites at rakeback.net.
Kukla’s Korner is always a free service for readers, but it costs some money to maintain. If you’re ever in a position to donate a few dollars to help out, we’d be very appreciative.