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Penguins by the Numbers: 1st Edition
by Tony on 10/26/09 at 12:24 PM ET
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Throughout the regular season I’ll throw out several Penguins statistics, some more pertinent than others.
The most important stat, naturally, is the team’s overall record of 9-2, good enough for 18 points, leading the Eastern Conference and tied with the Colorado Avalanche for the best record in the NHL.
Let’s take a look at some of the other stats for the Pens;
Individual:
Goals - Sidney Crosby - 6, Tyler Kennedy - 5, Evgeni Malkin - 4. Kennedy’s five goals is the surprise here, pleasantly so. Some of the other goal totals are not so pleasant, such as the gooseeggs listed on the stat sheet for Pens such as Chris Kunitz and Kris Letang. Including last regular season and playoffs, Kunitz has scored exactly one goal in his last 40 games. He has more of a physical presence and function on that first line with Crosby and Bill Guerin, but how much longer does HCDB keep him on the 1st line ?? To his credit, it really appears that Kunitz is snakebitten, and it should just be a matter of time before he lights the lamp. As for Letang, especially with Sergei Gonchar injured again, he’s going to be counted upon to contribute more to the offense. So far, however, while he’s more aggressive bringing the puck into the opponent’s zone, he still seems a bit gun-shy when it comes to the powerplay.
Assists - Malkin - 9, Alex Goligoski - 6, Gonchar - 6, Crosby - 5. Malkin is Malkin, no need for further discussion. Goligoski is just starting to blossom. His offensive instincts are really impressive so far in his young career. He’s also not shy about firing the biscuit, always a plus. Some are a little surprised that Crosby “only” has 5 assists. To me, that speaks to the depth of the team that they’re 9-2 without Crosby and Malkin lighting it up.
Points - Malkin - 13, Crosby - 11, Goligoski - 9. Sid and Geno will get their points. As mentioned, GoGo is only going to get better. Some of the other notable point totals; Jordan Staal/Ruslan Fedotenko/Kunitz/Letang - 5,
Plus/Minus - Goligoski +9, Jay McKee +7, Crosby +6. GoGo and McKee had been making a great defensive pair until Gonchar’s injury, but HCDB has GoGo with Brooks Oprik and McKee with new Penguin Martin Skoula. A not-so-good number: Orpik is a team-low -3.
PIM - McKee + Kunitz - 21, Rupp - 20. A little misleading on both McKee and Kunitz, both of them got 10-minute misconducts in games so far. Rupp’s total is not surprising. A name that is not seen but disappointing is Malkin’s 18 PIM’s. Many of those have been unnecessary, lazy penalties. Crosby’s not far behind with 16 PIM’s.
GWG - Kennedy - 3, Malkin/Gonchar/Crosby - 1. As mentioned before, a testament to the Pens’ depth, as a third-liner leads the team so far in game-winning goals.
Faceoff Pct. - Crosby - 59.8%, Staal - 47.9%, Malkin - 37.5%. Great to see not only Crosby, but Staal as well improving in the faceoff circle. Crosby has made significant improvements since his arrival 5 seasons ago.
NHL Rankings:
Goals - Crosby - 6 (T-11th)
Assists - Malkin - 9 (T-7th)
Points - Malkin - 13 (T-11th)
Plus/Minus - Goligoski +9 (T-3rd)
PIM - McKee/Kunitz - 21 (T-17th)
GWG - Kennedy - 3 (T-1st)
Faceoff Pct. - Crosby 59.8% (7th)
Team Rankings:
Powerplay - 18.4%, 17th - The continued mediocrity of the powerplay, considering the firepower, is starting to get a lot of press, even with Gonchar out. We’ll see if there will be systemmatic changes anytime soon.
Penalty Kill - 82.0%, T-9th - The Pens’ PK units continue to perform steady.
Goals per Game - 3.09, 15th
Goals Allowed per Game - 2.27, 4th
Shots per Game - 33.9, T-4th
Shots Allowed per Game - 26.8, 4th
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Tags: NHL-Hockey, Pittsburgh+Penguins,
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-The Power Play needs to get better. It should be alot higher than 18.4%.
-The Penalty Kill is ranked 9th which seems descent, but 82% isn’t that good. I’d like to see it at about 87.5% or higher.
-Kunitz has got to start finishing.
-Malkin’s atrocious on the draw, Some times it looks like he’s given up before the linesman even drops the puck.
-Sid is turning into one of the top face-off men in the league. He’s also perfect (3/3) in the shootouts this season.
-All in all a great start.
Posted by Lindas1st from New England on 10/26/09 at 12:47 PM ET