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With 5 Art Ross trophies on his shelf, Connor McDavid has surpassed Sidney Crosby as an offensive force.
But how much of McDavid's offensive edge over Crosby is because he has played more with his elite offensive teammate, Leon Draisaitl, than Crosby played with Evgeni Malkin?
At even strength, Crosby and Malkin have largely centred separate lines. Up until 2012-13 they occasionally played together at 5-on-5, and since 2013-14 they have almost exclusively played apart at 5-on-5. On the other hand, McDavid has spend a lot of time on a line with Draisaitl. But when Crosby and Malkin played together at even strength, they were extremely productive.
All numbers from naturalstattrick.com
From 2007-08 to 2012-13:
Crosby and Malkin played together for 1130 5-on-5 minutes, and were on the ice for 94 GF in those minutes, at a rate of 4.99 GF/60.
From 2017-18 to 2022-23:
McDavid and Draisaitl played together for 2963 5-on-5 minutes, and were on the ice for 204 GF in those minutes, at a rate of 4.13 GF/60.
And here are the corresponding numbers for the same years at 5-on-5.
McDavid/no Draisaitl: 4373 minutes, 228 GF, 3.13 GF/60
Draisaitl/no McDavid: 4171 minutes, 194 GF, 2.79 GF/60
No McDavid or Draisaitl: 10713 minutes, 311 GF, 1.74 GF/60
Crosby/no Malkin: 3341 minutes, 206 GF, 3.70 GF/60
Malkin/no Crosby: 4379 minutes, 214 GF, 2.93 GF/60
No Crosby or Malkin: 11874 minutes, 399 GF, 2.02 GF/60
So Crosby and Malkin actually produced at a higher rate offensively when played together at 5-on-5 than McDavid or Draisaitl did. Possibly with better support from their D, but even so, they were very potent together.
Could Crosby and Malkin have sustained this scoring rate with more minutes together, say if they played together as much as McDavid and Draisaitl? If so, is McDavid's edge over Crosby at EV scoring largely because he gets to play more with his world-class teammate than Crosby did? Or because Draisaitl's game is more complementary to another star than Malkin's game?
Of course, 5-on-5 is only one part of the game, and McDavid has a big edge in power play scoring. But Crosby and Malkin are notorious for not fitting together well on the power play. At 5-on-4, Pittsburgh has scored at about the same rate when one of them is off the ice as when both are on the ice, which is really bizarre. And it seems like Pittsburgh fans regularly complain about the power play. On the other hand, McDavid and Draisaitl are a historically productive power play combination.
So how much of McDavid's power play edge over Crosby is because Draisaitl is a more adaptable power play weapon than Malkin? Or is McDavid just better than Crosby with the man advantage?
But how much of McDavid's offensive edge over Crosby is because he has played more with his elite offensive teammate, Leon Draisaitl, than Crosby played with Evgeni Malkin?
At even strength, Crosby and Malkin have largely centred separate lines. Up until 2012-13 they occasionally played together at 5-on-5, and since 2013-14 they have almost exclusively played apart at 5-on-5. On the other hand, McDavid has spend a lot of time on a line with Draisaitl. But when Crosby and Malkin played together at even strength, they were extremely productive.
All numbers from naturalstattrick.com
From 2007-08 to 2012-13:
Crosby and Malkin played together for 1130 5-on-5 minutes, and were on the ice for 94 GF in those minutes, at a rate of 4.99 GF/60.
From 2017-18 to 2022-23:
McDavid and Draisaitl played together for 2963 5-on-5 minutes, and were on the ice for 204 GF in those minutes, at a rate of 4.13 GF/60.
And here are the corresponding numbers for the same years at 5-on-5.
McDavid/no Draisaitl: 4373 minutes, 228 GF, 3.13 GF/60
Draisaitl/no McDavid: 4171 minutes, 194 GF, 2.79 GF/60
No McDavid or Draisaitl: 10713 minutes, 311 GF, 1.74 GF/60
Crosby/no Malkin: 3341 minutes, 206 GF, 3.70 GF/60
Malkin/no Crosby: 4379 minutes, 214 GF, 2.93 GF/60
No Crosby or Malkin: 11874 minutes, 399 GF, 2.02 GF/60
So Crosby and Malkin actually produced at a higher rate offensively when played together at 5-on-5 than McDavid or Draisaitl did. Possibly with better support from their D, but even so, they were very potent together.
Could Crosby and Malkin have sustained this scoring rate with more minutes together, say if they played together as much as McDavid and Draisaitl? If so, is McDavid's edge over Crosby at EV scoring largely because he gets to play more with his world-class teammate than Crosby did? Or because Draisaitl's game is more complementary to another star than Malkin's game?
Of course, 5-on-5 is only one part of the game, and McDavid has a big edge in power play scoring. But Crosby and Malkin are notorious for not fitting together well on the power play. At 5-on-4, Pittsburgh has scored at about the same rate when one of them is off the ice as when both are on the ice, which is really bizarre. And it seems like Pittsburgh fans regularly complain about the power play. On the other hand, McDavid and Draisaitl are a historically productive power play combination.
So how much of McDavid's power play edge over Crosby is because Draisaitl is a more adaptable power play weapon than Malkin? Or is McDavid just better than Crosby with the man advantage?