When I was a kid, one of my favorite TV shows (until it turned kitschy) was Lost in Space. Invariably during the course of an episode, The Robot would utter, “Danger, Will Robinson,” to one of the young cast mates.
Okay Buker. What in the wide (wide) world of sports does that have to do with hockey?
Last night I was poking around on Natural Stat Trick when I made an intriguing discovery. One alluded to by my colleague, Other Rick.
While the Penguins’ performance has been a bit uneven to date, to put it mildly, we’re actually excelling in certain key metrics.
Five vs. five, we rank fifth in the league in Expected Goals for Percentage (xGF%) at 54.85, seventh in Scoring Chances for Percentage (SCF%) at 53.42, and fourth in High Danger Chances for Percentage (HDCF%) at 59.44!
Drilling down to an individual basis, I find it fascinating and not the least bit instructive which players are excelling in this important metric and which ones aren’t. The results may surprise you.
| Player (Pos) | HDCF | HDCA | HDCF% |
| Dumba (d) | 6 | 0 | 100.00 |
| Kindel (c) | 15 | 5 | 75.00 |
| Clifton (d) | 8 | 3 | 72.73 |
| Wotherspoon (d) | 20 | 11 | 64.52 |
| Tomasino (rw) | 7 | 4 | 63.64 |
| Hållander (rw) | 12 | 7 | 63.16 |
| Karlsson (d) | 24 | 14 | 63.16 |
| Novak (lw) | 12 | 7 | 63.16 |
| Brazeau (rw) | 22 | 13 | 62.86 |
| Mantha (lw) | 25 | 15 | 62.50 |
| Malkin (c) | 19 | 13 | 59.38 |
| Shea (d) | 26 | 18 | 59.09 |
| Letang (d) | 30 | 22 | 57.69 |
| Lizotte (c) | 16 | 12 | 57.14 |
| Koivunen (rw) | 5 | 4 | 55.56 |
| Acciari (rw) | 9 | 8 | 52.94 |
| Dewar (lw) | 11 | 11 | 50.00 |
| Rakell (lw) | 17 | 18 | 48.57 |
| Rust (rw) | 13 | 14 | 48.15 |
| Crosby (c) | 21 | 24 | 46.67 |
| Brunicke (d) | 11 | 17 | 39.29 |
| Jones (d) | 11 | 20 | 35.48 |
Leading the way? Spare defenseman Matt Dumba, who enjoyed a strong preseason but has yet to break into the regular lineup, is a perfect 100 percent. Followed by the youngest member of the team, 18-year-old Ben Kindel, at 75 percent.
Other surprises near the top of the heap include defensemen Connor Clifton (72.73%) and Parker Wotherspoon (64.52%). Third-liners Philip Tomasino (63.64%) and Tommy Novak (63.16%) as well.
Rookie Filip Hållander also sits at 63.16 percent. At least to me, that’s not a shocker. I think he’s played really well.
Who isn’t near the top of the list? First-liners Rickard Rakell (48.87%), Bryan Rust (48.15%) and Sidney Crosby (46.67%). Which flies directly in the face of the expected narrative. The defensive pairing of rookie Harrison Brunicke (39.29%) and Caleb Jones (35.48%) isn’t winning the high-danger battle, either.
Okay, so what about finishing those glorious high-danger chances we’re creating? Not a strong suit for last season’s bunch (ranked 19th at 48.37 percent).
We’re tied with the Hurricanes and Maple Leafs for the most high-danger goals in the league with eight. Percentage-wise, we’re tied for seventh with the defending Cup champion Panthers while converting at a 66.67 percent clip.
A most welcome development.
Perhaps, too, an early tribute to coach Dan Muse and his system.
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