Player Discussion Midpoint Report Cards

[The Devilish Buffoon]

We're halfway through the season - 41 points at 41 games. Figured it is a good time to reflect.

Last year, we didn't play our 41st game til Feb 7th. At that point, we were 15-22-4, with 34 pts and a .415 point %. This year, we are 19-19-3 with 41pts, right at .500.

Here is (roughly) how I will be grading... obviously, feel free to grade however you like:
A: 1st line player + meeting expectations
B: 2nd line player + meeting expectations OR 1st line player + below expectations OR 3rd line player + exceeding expectations
C: Bottom 6 player + meeting expectations OR top 6 player + below expectations
D: Below expectations (ranging from a bit to way below)
F: Complete failure of a season

I won't include coaching or management because we have threads on that already. I only included guys with at least 14 (over 1/3rd) games played. Let me know if I missed anyone.

On y vas!

Tim Stützle - A+
Timmy will be the only player to get a perfect score from me. What can you say? He has improved, significantly, in just about every aspect of the game. He continues to grow offensively, defensively, in transition, physically... everything. He is an elite offensive player and far from a liability on D, although there are still some consistency issues. He is at the top of the league in cost per point, he's scoring at a 38 goal, 82 point pace, and he is posting the best PK results on our team. Amazing development from a great kid.

Brady Tkachuk - A
Brady has hit a new level offensively, pacing for 30 goals and 82 points. He has slowed down a bit lately, and that is what keeps him from an A+; he needs a bit more consistency in his game. While a work in progress, I've found his defensive attention to detail better and his puck handling, pass reception, and creativity to be on another level. He has been noticeably less physical than in recent years, but is still one of the more physical players in the league. He is developing into a legit top player and is a bonafide 1st line winger.

Claude Giroux - A
G has been all we could ask for and more. A leader in the room, in the media, on the ice, and a damn good player to boot. On pace for 30 goals and 76pts, one of our most defensively-responsible players, and probably our most consistent player. Nothing bad to say about him. We are very lucky to have him.

Alex Debrincat - A
Debrincat, after a slow start (albeit one where he still looked pretty good), Debrincat has emerged as one of our more consistent, dynamic, and clutch player. He is constantly moving his feet, working, giving second efforts, the whole nine yards. He is the definition of making the most of what he has. He can drive the play from the wing and is able to score in many different ways (including by setting his line mates up in prime scoring positions). Again, we are very lucky to have him.

Jake Sanderson - B+
The Sandman, Big Daddy, Mr. D, whatever you call him... he has been damn good. His defensive game is remarkably consistent and not far from elite. His offensive game, while somewhat reserved, has been solid and shown promise for much more. He is a legit #3D right now and I shudder to think of where we'd be without him. He is good at all aspects of the game, besides maybe PP, but its hard to evaluate him on this current unit and I have little doubt that he will soon be quite good at that, too. A great season from Jake so far.

Cam Talbot & Anton Forsberg - B
Our goaltending duo has been good, not great, but about as good as you could have reasonably expected from them. We haven't had both of them really going at once, but both guys have had very good stretches and neither of the have really, really stunk. They have both shown an ability to bounce back from bad games.

Artem Zub - B-
Zub has had an up and down season, largely due to injuries. Before he first went down, he was playing some of the best hockey of his career. Since returning from his last injury, he's been pretty bad... but it's hard to blame him for that. Unfortunately, however, that makes up about half of the hockey he's played this year. If he wasn't playing with a bubble on his face for this last stretch, I'd have him around a C. I do think he will improve this rating by the end of the year, maybe even hitting an A.

Thomas Chabot - B-
Chabot has done some things really well - as well as he ever has - but has done other things quite badly - as badly as he ever has. His defensive effort and attention to detail has been seriously lacking at times. He has struggled, at times, when the game gets physical. On the other hand, he has been an elite driver of offence, has hit a new stride on the PP, has been a good goal scorer, and eats up minutes. I wouldn't say he's been bad, but he can absolutely be way better. I do think there is some fatigue there. All in all, though, he is our only player who can consistently drive offence from the back-end, and he is one of the best in the league at that. He does a lot of heavy-lifting on plays where we doesn't get any points. He needs to be better, but I think he has been "ok". Considered a C+.

Shane Pinto - C+
Shane hasn't had the easiest season, through no fault of his own. He already faced a tall task of being a 3C despite having almost no pro experience. Being forced into the 2C role was always an unreasonable ask. That said, he has done as well as he could have. If we have a healthy lineup, I suspect Pints would be rated higher here.

Tyler Motte - C+
Motte has been all you could ask for. A bit of secondary scoring (mostly at the start of the year) and responsible, 3rd line hockey. Doesn't make many mistakes, doesn't give up much. He has been an important player for us and is sorely missed in our bottom 6.

Mark Kastelic - C+
Kastelic has been one of our top bottom 6ers and, while he has games where he isn't quite where he needs to be, he's been pretty consistent for a young NHL C, especially one who relies heavily on speed, physicality, and constant engagement. He seems to have a bit more to give offensively, but the PP experiment has not been a success. All in all, he has come in and shown he can fill an important role for this team, and that goes a long way. I initially had him at a C rating, but when I looked at the other players on that list, it didn't seem fair to him.

Erik Brannstrom - C+
Brannstrom is a tough player to evaluate. On the one hand, he has made clear improvements. He has played more responsibly and become a much better defender. He still struggles at taking guys wide and battling in front of the net, especially without taking a penalty. Due to his size, he can be undisciplined in general, although he doesn't take that many penalties... it just often seems like the penalties he takes are bad ones. His offence has been non-existent, although his transition game has been good. I think his turnover against Nashville summed up his limitations pretty well - he is not skilled or dynamic enough to play an aggressive offensive game, and so he needs to play conservatively in order to have a positive impact. He has done that pretty well this year, but when he deviates from it... it rarely goes well. I considered anywhere from C to B- for him.

Drake Batherson - C
First, the good. Despite some reason struggles, Drake still leads our team in PP goals and points. Hell, he has more PP goals than Stutzle and Giroux have primary PP points. He is an elite offensive talent who can really make teams pay when he has time space. Unfortunately, he has been mostly unable to create that time and space for himself at ES, when that's the only way to get it. He only has 3 EV goals, which is just not enough. He has often been lazy, isn't consistent with his 2nd efforts, can be very bad on the back check and with playing structured hockey in general. He has been, in my opinion, our biggest disappointment by far.

Travis Hamonic - C
Hamonic hasn't been great, hasn't been terrible... has just sort of "been". He has had big moment defending leads, and is another guy being asked to play above his means. I do like him and, in an ideal world, I bring him back for 1.2mil as a 5/6/7D.

Austin Watson - C
Some people say he's lost a step, I don't really see it, though. Watson has been what I expected. Ideally, he isn't playing every single night... but he has been a good PKer, solid physical presence & shot blocker, decent goalscorer, and a guy we use to defend leads late. He doesn't get any easy minutes and does ok in them.

Parker Kelly - C
A tale of two seasons from PK. He has been our best bottom 6er for the past several weeks, but was not good beforehand. He doesn't bring much/any offence, but he plays a hard, pesty game, he draws penalties, and can really make the most of his minutes.

Derick Brassard - C-
Brassard is another player who has been asked to do way too much. He has been quite bad at ES but has produced on the PP2, which goes a long way and has to count for something. He has done about as well as we could have expected, especially given that he was never supposed to play this much.

Nick Holden - C-
Another guy who has probably played a lot more than he should have. He has a bad start to the season, but has stabilized a bit more lately.

Dylan Gambrell - C-
I probably like Gambrell more than most. I think he is a perfect plug - he plays a safe, conservative, simple game. He can go out there and give you 8-10 minutes of nothing. Nothing good, nothing bad. That's not what you want in a regular, but it's nice to have an extra forward who can give you that.

Matt Joseph - D+
Joseph has had a disappointing season, which has included a healthy scratch. He has had some very good games, and started the season well, but for most of the campaign he has looked like a 4th liner. Hopefully he has a good 2nd half.

Nikita Zaitsev - F+
Not a ton to say. He was awful to start the season, came back, looked good, and got hurt. If he can play like he did before this most recent injury, that will go a really long way for us for as long as he is here. He isn't a top 4 D, of course, but if he can be a solid 18min a night guy, we're laughing. I gave him the + because I feel for him and he started to turn it around, but his season thus far can only be described as a disaster. That said, he has plenty of time to right the ship and end on a positive note, and I hope he does that.

Click to read more...

 

[JD1]

I'm not quite sure about your rating criteria

Your list looks more like a best to worst player ranking

Player rankings are probably best done against player expectations

Pinto was slotted in as a 3C. He's been playing 2C all year at a not great but adequate level.

Chabot was slotted in as a stud #1D.

In relative terms i think Pinto is exceeding expectations whereas Chabot isn't meeting them yet you have Chabot ranked higher.

 

[The Devilish Buffoon]

I'm not quite sure about your rating criteria

Your list looks more like a best to worst player ranking

Player rankings are probably best done against player expectations

Pinto was slotted in as a 3C. He's been playing 2C all year at a not great but adequate level.

Chabot was slotted in as a stud #1D.

In relative terms i think Pinto is exceeding expectations whereas Chabot isn't meeting them yet you have Chabot ranked higher.

What you're describing is a rating that is completely relative. I chose a rating that is partially relative, and partially "objective". So yes, under a completely different criteria than the one I chose to use, the list would look different.

That said, I sure wouldn't say Watson, Kelly, Gambrell etc are better than Joseph, nor are Motte, Pinto, Brannstrom, Talbot, Forsberg, better or more instrumental to our success than Batherson, despite his struggles.

If you want to use a different rating system, go for it. I'm not claiming mine is best. It's just the one I chose.

 

[DrEasy]

Agreed with JD1; I'll rate against expectations and based on their contract situation as well:

Jimmy: A+
Basically agreed with @The Devilish Buffoon. Superstar already, and with even better things to come!

Chucky: A-
There is some inconsistency to his game, especially defensively, leaving me wanting. But he's putting up the points, so it's hard for me to complain too much.

Bath: C
A defensive liability, yet puts in the points on the PP. Useful, but very disappointing considering how much better he can be.

Pinto: INC
Was great to begin the season on the 3rd line, but clearly over-matched on the 2nd line this early in his career. Hard to assess. Maybe a B?

D-Cat: A-
Putting up the points, but he should have 20 goals by now based on his track record, and I honestly don't even know how he was a 40-goal scorer given that his tools don't look all that impressive to me.

Chabot: C
No urgency to his game, passes are off, pass reception is bad. What happened to this guy? If he was still on his ELC I'd be elated to have him play like this, but as a $8M/yr guy I want a lot, lot more.

Sanderson: A+
I didn't expect him to a BOSS coming in as a rookie. So much poise already!

Zub: B
He's his usual solid, non-flashy self (maybe a little dip in performance post-injury). Nothing wrong with that, but I want him to show off his puck-handling skills a bit more, cause I know he has more in store.

Hamonic: B-
I don't expect much from him, but he's met my expectations: as a 3rd pairing guy he would be just fine. Too bad he's on a 2nd pairing...

Brannstrom: B-
He still shows a great transition game, and has improved defensively. Still will be out-muscled occasionally, and the big enigma is how can he not have more points even by accident? He probably needs to be even more assertive offensively, take even more chances, but the coaches might not be encouraging that in him (possibly understandably so).

Watson: C-
Fewer and fewer games where he hits and blocks shots like a savage, and if he doesn't bring that (and the occasional goal), well then I'm not sure he deserves a roster spot.

Kelly: C+
Slow start but getting better.

Brassard: C
I have an irrational aversion toward him due to the Ziba trade, but that's not his fault. Still, my expectations are low, and he barely meets them. Other than a few points here and there, not sure what he brings to the table.

Gambrell: C
I don't mind him as a grinder on the 4th line, but I mean come on, you have to put up a few points here and there. Dude is an offensive black hole.

edit: forgot Giroux: A
Everything @The Devilish Buffoon said.

aaand Kastelic: C+
Even though I don't see much wrong with him, I honestly expected a bit more "truculence" and a bit more offense from him.

 

[bicboi64]

Claude Giroux - A+
For me, the only one who gets an A+ is Giroux, dude is looking to be the best UFA signing for us.

Tim Stützle - A
Stu went from a defensive liability, to someone who is actively working to play in both ends. He still has ways to go, but the effort on the PK and drive to be a puck hound is refreshing.

Sanderson A-
Stepping into a team where you're expected to be a top4D isn't easy, especially when you have to fill Chabot's shoes and your defensive partner is slotted too high. Hamonic might have helped Sandy at the start, but as of now he's a drag.

Brady Tkachuk - B+
Offensively, he's put in another gear, but the issue is him getting worse defensively. His clutch factor is growing, he's scored some big goals in clutch time.

Cam Talbot & Anton Forsberg - B+
This has been our best duo since Andy and they give us legitimate chances to win. They're doing everything that's been asked for.

Artem Zub - B+
Our only good shut down defender. Probably should be a B, but without him we are a lotto team.

Alex Debrincat - B
We need more goals from him. The amount of PP time he's had along with our high PP success, he needs to be leading us in goals. His two way effort is fine, but he was brought in to be a game changer and so far it ain't happening.

Thomas Chabot - B-
He's not looking like an $8 million dollar defender, is too floaty, and has gotten worse in every aspect of the game.

Tyler Motte - B-
Probably one of our better bottom 6 guys, he's playing shut down hockey doing what we need him to do.

Shane Pinto - B-
If Pinto wasn't injured last year, he'd have been exposed as too fresh. He's not ready to be our 2C and we need Norris back asap so that Pinto can develop properly at 3C. He should be playing with Formenton and Joseph ideally, but even right now, some steady time with Giroux and Cat would be the best-case option.

Travis Hamonic - C+
He's being asked to play a 2RD role but isn't fast enough to do that. Not overly his fault for being put in that role, but at the same time, he's stopped being a valid option at 2RD after 30ish games.

Erik Brannstrom - C+
He's gotten better, but DJ still doesn't play him enough and when he does have opportunity, Brannstrom doesn't produce any offense. He's not a bad player by any means, but the lack of production is frustrating given how he has offensive instinct.

Mark Kastelic - C+
Decent 4th liner, needs to stay there.

Drake Batherson - C
Batherson is defensively atrocious and is not carrying the puck the way he used to. Loads of bone headed plays as well.

Derick Brassard - C
being asked to do too much, but he hasn't been a defensive liability, even if he's offensively pretty mediocre.

Nick Holden - C
Him and Zaitsev rotate on being our 7th defender, and he's fine on the bottom pairing. Don't think we keep him on the roster next year.

Austin Watson - C
Shouldn't be playing anywhere past the 4th line, but not even sure what can be expected from him at this point. He hasn't shown the greatest hockey sense.

Dylan Gambrell - C-
About average at everything and is fine to insert if anyone else is injured.

Matt Joseph - C-
His defensive game is fine, but his offense has dried up along with the IQ he showed in his short burst of production last year.

Parker Kelly - D+
Used to bring in loads of energy, but has lost loads of grit and just isn't doing much to play his role a a bottom line grinding guy.

Nikita Zaitsev - D+
He went from someone who was a liability every night to someone who can play as a #6.

 

[SensFactor]

Claude Giroux A+ (outstanding)
Tim Stützle A
Brady Tkachuk A-
Sanderson A-
Artem Zub B+
Cam Talbot B+
Anton Forsberg B
Alex Debrincat B (I like him, hope he stays with Ottawa. Not worth $9M+. Rather trade him for a top 4RD)
Tyler Motte B- (perfect bottom six, should sign him to an extension)
Shane Pinto B- (has hit the rookie wall, it happens)
Thomas Chabot C+ (plays one speed, too soft, way too many turnovers for what he gets paid)
Drake Batherson C+ (maybe "something" else is on his mind, his defensive game is atrocious this year, -28)
Travis Hamonic C+
Erik Brannstrom C (he hasn't always been a C, he was a solid B earlier in the season but his play has dropped)
Mark Kastelic C
Derick Brassard C
Nick Holden C
Austin Watson C
Dylan Gambrell C
Parker Kelly C (He's been ok. I'd rather have Crookshank in over him)
Matt Joseph C- (this signing looks bad right now,.. he's been ineffective all year and now he's hurt)
Nikita Zaitsev C-

 

[Norris4Norris]

Giroux A+ (Leader)
Stutzle A+ (Budding Superstar and playing like it)
Sanderson A+ (Budding defensive Superstar IMO, so good)
Tkachuk A+ (Great Captain, goes to the net and scores)
Debrincat A (Great hands, vision, and great potential for the future, sign him please)
Cam Talbot + Forsberg A (These guys are killing it, saving points)
Chabot B+ (Still plays a lot of minutes and can pass and skate pretty well, he is a horse IMO)
Batherson B+ ( People don't like him, but he is lethal on the Powerplay, I think his contract is going to be more valuable to the team every year that goes by.)
Zub B+ (Ya he can really defend well one on one, skates well, I like him)
Pinto B+ (Lots of potential)
Brannstrom B (Showing some nice stretch passes, hopefully he continues to mature as a defenceman)
Motte B (Not a bad player at all, I like him)

The rest get about a C, they can be traded IMO.

 

[Answer]

If Batherson is C, then Tkachuk should be C+

Same amount of production, but both being almost equally bad defensively, with Batherson being more valuable on the PP

 

[Six Assets]

Stutzte was terrible for like the first 20 games or so. No A+ from me, more like a B/B+.

 

[Answer]

Tim Stützle A
Sanderson A-
Claude Giroux B+
Shane Pinto B
Artem Zub B
Tyler Motte B-

Cam Talbot C
Anton Forsberg C
Alex Debrincat C
Brady Tkachuk C
Thomas Chabot C-
Drake Batherson C
Travis Hamonic C-
Erik Brannstrom C-
Mark Kastelic C
Derick Brassard C
Nick Holden C
Austin Watson C
Dylan Gambrell C
Parker Kelly C
Matt Joseph C-
Nikita Zaitsev C-

 

[OccidentalSoothsayer]

Wish I had some of you guys grading my work back when I was in school, talk about a light touch. 24/32 should mean the average grade should be a D. These guys stink.

 

[Samsquanch]

Tough crowd.

Batherson is too productive at his price tag to be such a failure in the eyes of most in here. Lol dude just had a 12 game point streak.

He can and must be better for us. But he's not the whipping boy you all want him be. And hes still actually outperforming his cap hit.

 

[JD1]

Tough crowd.

Batherson is too productive at his price tag to be such a failure in the eyes of most in here. Lol dude just had a 12 game point streak.

He can and must be better for us. But he's not the whipping boy you all want him be. And hes still actually outperforming his cap hit.

As an offensive player sure. But he's minus whatever and the scope of the minus whatever outweighs pretty much anything else.

How's this? One thing DJ could do to enhance opportunities to win would be to ONLY play Batherson on the PP. Crazy idea isn't it? Whatever line he's on is getting scored on so the answer may be don't put him out there. That's how bad his numbers look

 

[ReginKarlssonLehner]

Claude Giroux - A+
For me, the only one who gets an A+ is Giroux, dude is looking to be the best UFA signing for us.

Tim Stützle - A
Stu went from a defensive liability, to someone who is actively working to play in both ends. He still has ways to go, but the effort on the PK and drive to be a puck hound is refreshing.

Sanderson A-
Stepping into a team where you're expected to be a top4D isn't easy, especially when you have to fill Chabot's shoes and your defensive partner is slotted too high. Hamonic might have helped Sandy at the start, but as of now he's a drag.

Brady Tkachuk - B+
Offensively, he's put in another gear, but the issue is him getting worse defensively. His clutch factor is growing, he's scored some big goals in clutch time.

Cam Talbot & Anton Forsberg - B+
This has been our best duo since Andy and they give us legitimate chances to win. They're doing everything that's been asked for.

Artem Zub - B+
Our only good shut down defender. Probably should be a B, but without him we are a lotto team.

Alex Debrincat - B
We need more goals from him. The amount of PP time he's had along with our high PP success, he needs to be leading us in goals. His two way effort is fine, but he was brought in to be a game changer and so far it ain't happening.

Thomas Chabot - B-
He's not looking like an $8 million dollar defender, is too floaty, and has gotten worse in every aspect of the game.

Tyler Motte - B-
Probably one of our better bottom 6 guys, he's playing shut down hockey doing what we need him to do.

Shane Pinto - B-
If Pinto wasn't injured last year, he'd have been exposed as too fresh. He's not ready to be our 2C and we need Norris back asap so that Pinto can develop properly at 3C. He should be playing with Formenton and Joseph ideally, but even right now, some steady time with Giroux and Cat would be the best-case option.

Travis Hamonic - C+
He's being asked to play a 2RD role but isn't fast enough to do that. Not overly his fault for being put in that role, but at the same time, he's stopped being a valid option at 2RD after 30ish games.

Erik Brannstrom - C+
He's gotten better, but DJ still doesn't play him enough and when he does have opportunity, Brannstrom doesn't produce any offense. He's not a bad player by any means, but the lack of production is frustrating given how he has offensive instinct.

Mark Kastelic - C+
Decent 4th liner, needs to stay there.

Drake Batherson - C
Batherson is defensively atrocious and is not carrying the puck the way he used to. Loads of bone headed plays as well.

Derick Brassard - C
being asked to do too much, but he hasn't been a defensive liability, even if he's offensively pretty mediocre.

Nick Holden - C
Him and Zaitsev rotate on being our 7th defender, and he's fine on the bottom pairing. Don't think we keep him on the roster next year.

Austin Watson - C
Shouldn't be playing anywhere past the 4th line, but not even sure what can be expected from him at this point. He hasn't shown the greatest hockey sense.

Dylan Gambrell - C-
About average at everything and is fine to insert if anyone else is injured.

Matt Joseph - C-
His defensive game is fine, but his offense has dried up along with the IQ he showed in his short burst of production last year.

Parker Kelly - D+
Used to bring in loads of energy, but has lost loads of grit and just isn't doing much to play his role a a bottom line grinding guy.

Nikita Zaitsev - D+
He went from someone who was a liability every night to someone who can play as a #6.

Nailed it.

Not sure how a lot of other posters are doling out A's on a team that can barely pass .500. Would probably give DeBrincat an B+ or A- because of his really good 2 way play and being the main cog on his line.

 

[thinkwild]

I always remember that famous tale from Gretzky about walking past the Isles dressing room after the young Oilers team had lost the Cup to them, and expecting to see the Isles all celebrating. But they were exhausted and recuperating. And that’s when he said he realized the level you have to get to in order to win.



Watching Giroux, I don’t know if im imagining it or its confirmation bias, but there seems to be a different battle level with him that the rest of the young players don’t have. Hopefully, if im not imagining it, it starts to rub off soon. A.

 

[Ice-Tray]

I always remember that famous tale from Gretzky about walking past the Isles dressing room after the young Oilers team had lost the Cup to them, and expecting to see the Isles all celebrating. But they were exhausted and recuperating. And that’s when he said he realized the level you have to get to in order to win.



Watching Giroux, I don’t know if im imagining it or its confirmation bias, but there seems to be a different battle level with him that the rest of the young players don’t have. Hopefully, if im not imagining it, it starts to rub off soon. A.

It’s interesting. It’s another level of engagement. No smiles, focus on the prize. Not seeing much desperation out there unless the kids wear it differently.

Torts wanting iPads off the bench kind of hints at this move to focus the players on what’s happening on the ice and stay engaged in the real action in front of them.

I’m wonder if these little mini time outs for screen time are keeping the kids from being fully engaged in the action.

Wonder if we’ll see it spread or whether it’s a dinosaur move.

 

[swiftwin]

Performance vs expectations

Stutzle A
Sanderson A
Giroux A-
Tkachuk A-
DeBrincat B+
Zub B
Talbot B
Forsberg B-
Chabot B-
Pinto B-
Kastelic B-
Hamonic C+
Motte C+
Joseph C
Brassard C
Brannstrom C
Watson C
Kelly C
Gambrell C-
Zaitsev C-
Holden C-
Batherson C-

 

[swiftwin]

Tough crowd.

Batherson is too productive at his price tag to be such a failure in the eyes of most in here. Lol dude just had a 12 game point streak.

He can and must be better for us. But he's not the whipping boy you all want him be. And hes still actually outperforming his cap hit.

Nah, Batherson is god awful 5v5 this season. 10 of his 13 goals have been on the PP. He's league worst -28. He's atrocious defensively.

I don't really care about his contract. I'm comparing his play to what we know he can do and did last season.

 

[Ice-Tray]

The grading is a bit weird in my opinion.

Vs expectations, Kelly (until recently), Branstrom, Batherson, and Chabot are clear fails to me. Not C’s but F’s because that’s what failing to meet expectations means.

Add Norris and the absence of Formy and that right there is the list of players that needed to at least live up to expectations, or be eligible to play, for us to eek out some more wins.

I don’t see how Kelly, Branstrom, Chabot, Batherson can have passing grades on the season so far if we’re judging against ‘reasonable expectations’ of their play that we have seen previously.

Bath and Chabot have been bad more often than not defensively and with back breaking decision making at critical moments, while Kelly hasn’t lived up to his play to end last year, until recently. Branstrom is a shell of the guy we saw to start the season and hasn’t turned the corner we hoped he would…. Yet.

Watson and Holden at best are an even 50% with Zaitsev having found a way to dip a bit further than last season. We haven’t seen much of Joseph in a line he would usually play with, but he’s also at best a 50% right now in my opinion.

Kastelic has been OK. He doesn’t hit mean, but he’s big and relatively fast and can win a face off, but he hasn’t really upped his game much on what we saw to end the season…. Yet. Glad to have him on the squad, but he hasn’t progressed too much so far (could be linemate switches as it’s been a jumble as well.

For a PTO I think Brassbhas been a home run and has been great… as a PTO. We have needed him in the lineup since Norris went down.

Gambrell has been great as a 13th guys as well. He’s been great on our new energetic line.

Perhaps a better way to grade would be to divide guys into three categories; those who are failing, meeting, or excelling ‘expectations’. Perhaps a 4 and 5 category for wildly failing and widely exceeding expectations.

 

[Cosmix]

As an offensive player sure. But he's minus whatever and the scope of the minus whatever outweighs pretty much anything else.

How's this? One thing DJ could do to enhance opportunities to win would be to ONLY play Batherson on the PP. Crazy idea isn't it? Whatever line he's on is getting scored on so the answer may be don't put him out there. That's how bad his numbers look

I think +/- is a bad stat; I would rather use GF/60 and GA/60 (which I think also requires an improved stat too because just being on the ice for a GF or GA does not tell the whole story).

 

[DylanSensFan]

Agreed with JD1; I'll rate against expectations and based on their contract situation as well:

Jimmy: A+
Basically agreed with @The Devilish Buffoon. Superstar already, and with even better things to come!

Chucky: A-
There is some inconsistency to his game, especially defensively, leaving me wanting. But he's putting up the points, so it's hard for me to complain too much.

Bath: C
A defensive liability, yet puts in the points on the PP. Useful, but very disappointing considering how much better he can be.

Pinto: INC
Was great to begin the season on the 3rd line, but clearly over-matched on the 2nd line this early in his career. Hard to assess. Maybe a B?

D-Cat: A-
Putting up the points, but he should have 20 goals by now based on his track record, and I honestly don't even know how he was a 40-goal scorer given that his tools don't look all that impressive to me.

Chabot: C
No urgency to his game, passes are off, pass reception is bad. What happened to this guy? If he was still on his ELC I'd be elated to have him play like this, but as a $8M/yr guy I want a lot, lot more.

Sanderson: A+
I didn't expect him to a BOSS coming in as a rookie. So much poise already!

Zub: B
He's his usual solid, non-flashy self (maybe a little dip in performance post-injury). Nothing wrong with that, but I want him to show off his puck-handling skills a bit more, cause I know he has more in store.

Hamonic: B-
I don't expect much from him, but he's met my expectations: as a 3rd pairing guy he would be just fine. Too bad he's on a 2nd pairing...

Brannstrom: B-
He still shows a great transition game, and has improved defensively. Still will be out-muscled occasionally, and the big enigma is how can he not have more points even by accident? He probably needs to be even more assertive offensively, take even more chances, but the coaches might not be encouraging that in him (possibly understandably so).

Watson: C-
Fewer and fewer games where he hits and blocks shots like a savage, and if he doesn't bring that (and the occasional goal), well then I'm not sure he deserves a roster spot.

Kelly: C+
Slow start but getting better.

Brassard: C
I have an irrational aversion toward him due to the Ziba trade, but that's not his fault. Still, my expectations are low, and he barely meets them. Other than a few points here and there, not sure what he brings to the table.

Gambrell: C
I don't mind him as a grinder on the 4th line, but I mean come on, you have to put up a few points here and there. Dude is an offensive black hole.

edit: forgot Giroux: A
Everything @The Devilish Buffoon said.

aaand Kastelic: C+
Even though I don't see much wrong with him, I honestly expected a bit more "truculence" and a bit more offense from him.

I would give Kastelic a solid B -

 

[Adele Dazeem]

Everyone is way too nice. Our best NHL quality player night in and out is Giroux. Stutzle and Sanderson have shown that they are the future. Tkachuk had a stellar start (A range), but he has quickly gone the opposite spectrum this past two months. Debrincat's game has not woven well with this team; whether that's because he needs better linemates or because of the system, I don't know. Chabot has been out of the "best"players of this team the second worst when it comes to level of play. Only above the worst - Batherson. He's definitely battling something - emotions or actual injury at play. He's out of sync, just like DJ Smith's coaching style.

Stutzle B+
Sanderson B
Giroux A-
Tkachuk B
DeBrincat C+
Zub B-
Talbot C
Forsberg C-
Chabot C
Pinto C+
Kastelic C+
Hamonic C
Motte C+
Joseph D
Brassard D+
Brannstrom C-
Watson D+
Kelly C
Gambrell D
Zaitsev D
Holden C-
Batherson D+

 

[Answer]

We're halfway through the season - 41 points at 41 games. Figured it is a good time to reflect.

Last year, we didn't play our 41st game til Feb 7th. At that point, we were 15-22-4, with 34 pts and a .415 point %. This year, we are 19-19-3 with 41pts, right at .500.

Here is (roughly) how I will be grading... obviously, feel free to grade however you like:
A: 1st line player + meeting expectations
B: 2nd line player + meeting expectations OR 1st line player + below expectations OR 3rd line player + exceeding expectations
C: Bottom 6 player + meeting expectations OR top 6 player + below expectations
D: Below expectations (ranging from a bit to way below)
F: Complete failure of a season

I won't include coaching or management because we have threads on that already. I only included guys with at least 14 (over 1/3rd) games played. Let me know if I missed anyone.

On y vas!

Tim Stützle - A+
Timmy will be the only player to get a perfect score from me. What can you say? He has improved, significantly, in just about every aspect of the game. He continues to grow offensively, defensively, in transition, physically... everything. He is an elite offensive player and far from a liability on D, although there are still some consistency issues. He is at the top of the league in cost per point, he's scoring at a 38 goal, 82 point pace, and he is posting the best PK results on our team. Amazing development from a great kid.

Brady Tkachuk - A
Brady has hit a new level offensively, pacing for 30 goals and 82 points. He has slowed down a bit lately, and that is what keeps him from an A+; he needs a bit more consistency in his game. While a work in progress, I've found his defensive attention to detail better and his puck handling, pass reception, and creativity to be on another level. He has been noticeably less physical than in recent years, but is still one of the more physical players in the league. He is developing into a legit top player and is a bonafide 1st line winger.

Claude Giroux - A
G has been all we could ask for and more. A leader in the room, in the media, on the ice, and a damn good player to boot. On pace for 30 goals and 76pts, one of our most defensively-responsible players, and probably our most consistent player. Nothing bad to say about him. We are very lucky to have him.

Alex Debrincat - A
Debrincat, after a slow start (albeit one where he still looked pretty good), Debrincat has emerged as one of our more consistent, dynamic, and clutch player. He is constantly moving his feet, working, giving second efforts, the whole nine yards. He is the definition of making the most of what he has. He can drive the play from the wing and is able to score in many different ways (including by setting his line mates up in prime scoring positions). Again, we are very lucky to have him.

Jake Sanderson - B+
The Sandman, Big Daddy, Mr. D, whatever you call him... he has been damn good. His defensive game is remarkably consistent and not far from elite. His offensive game, while somewhat reserved, has been solid and shown promise for much more. He is a legit #3D right now and I shudder to think of where we'd be without him. He is good at all aspects of the game, besides maybe PP, but its hard to evaluate him on this current unit and I have little doubt that he will soon be quite good at that, too. A great season from Jake so far.

Cam Talbot & Anton Forsberg - B
Our goaltending duo has been good, not great, but about as good as you could have reasonably expected from them. We haven't had both of them really going at once, but both guys have had very good stretches and neither of the have really, really stunk. They have both shown an ability to bounce back from bad games.

Artem Zub - B-
Zub has had an up and down season, largely due to injuries. Before he first went down, he was playing some of the best hockey of his career. Since returning from his last injury, he's been pretty bad... but it's hard to blame him for that. Unfortunately, however, that makes up about half of the hockey he's played this year. If he wasn't playing with a bubble on his face for this last stretch, I'd have him around a C. I do think he will improve this rating by the end of the year, maybe even hitting an A.

Thomas Chabot - B-
Chabot has done some things really well - as well as he ever has - but has done other things quite badly - as badly as he ever has. His defensive effort and attention to detail has been seriously lacking at times. He has struggled, at times, when the game gets physical. On the other hand, he has been an elite driver of offence, has hit a new stride on the PP, has been a good goal scorer, and eats up minutes. I wouldn't say he's been bad, but he can absolutely be way better. I do think there is some fatigue there. All in all, though, he is our only player who can consistently drive offence from the back-end, and he is one of the best in the league at that. He does a lot of heavy-lifting on plays where we doesn't get any points. He needs to be better, but I think he has been "ok". Considered a C+.

Shane Pinto - C+
Shane hasn't had the easiest season, through no fault of his own. He already faced a tall task of being a 3C despite having almost no pro experience. Being forced into the 2C role was always an unreasonable ask. That said, he has done as well as he could have. If we have a healthy lineup, I suspect Pints would be rated higher here.

Tyler Motte - C+
Motte has been all you could ask for. A bit of secondary scoring (mostly at the start of the year) and responsible, 3rd line hockey. Doesn't make many mistakes, doesn't give up much. He has been an important player for us and is sorely missed in our bottom 6.

Mark Kastelic - C+
Kastelic has been one of our top bottom 6ers and, while he has games where he isn't quite where he needs to be, he's been pretty consistent for a young NHL C, especially one who relies heavily on speed, physicality, and constant engagement. He seems to have a bit more to give offensively, but the PP experiment has not been a success. All in all, he has come in and shown he can fill an important role for this team, and that goes a long way. I initially had him at a C rating, but when I looked at the other players on that list, it didn't seem fair to him.

Erik Brannstrom - C+
Brannstrom is a tough player to evaluate. On the one hand, he has made clear improvements. He has played more responsibly and become a much better defender. He still struggles at taking guys wide and battling in front of the net, especially without taking a penalty. Due to his size, he can be undisciplined in general, although he doesn't take that many penalties... it just often seems like the penalties he takes are bad ones. His offence has been non-existent, although his transition game has been good. I think his turnover against Nashville summed up his limitations pretty well - he is not skilled or dynamic enough to play an aggressive offensive game, and so he needs to play conservatively in order to have a positive impact. He has done that pretty well this year, but when he deviates from it... it rarely goes well. I considered anywhere from C to B- for him.

Drake Batherson - C
First, the good. Despite some reason struggles, Drake still leads our team in PP goals and points. Hell, he has more PP goals than Stutzle and Giroux have primary PP points. He is an elite offensive talent who can really make teams pay when he has time space. Unfortunately, he has been mostly unable to create that time and space for himself at ES, when that's the only way to get it. He only has 3 EV goals, which is just not enough. He has often been lazy, isn't consistent with his 2nd efforts, can be very bad on the back check and with playing structured hockey in general. He has been, in my opinion, our biggest disappointment by far.

Travis Hamonic - C
Hamonic hasn't been great, hasn't been terrible... has just sort of "been". He has had big moment defending leads, and is another guy being asked to play above his means. I do like him and, in an ideal world, I bring him back for 1.2mil as a 5/6/7D.

Austin Watson - C
Some people say he's lost a step, I don't really see it, though. Watson has been what I expected. Ideally, he isn't playing every single night... but he has been a good PKer, solid physical presence & shot blocker, decent goalscorer, and a guy we use to defend leads late. He doesn't get any easy minutes and does ok in them.

Parker Kelly - C
A tale of two seasons from PK. He has been our best bottom 6er for the past several weeks, but was not good beforehand. He doesn't bring much/any offence, but he plays a hard, pesty game, he draws penalties, and can really make the most of his minutes.

Derick Brassard - C-
Brassard is another player who has been asked to do way too much. He has been quite bad at ES but has produced on the PP2, which goes a long way and has to count for something. He has done about as well as we could have expected, especially given that he was never supposed to play this much.

Nick Holden - C-
Another guy who has probably played a lot more than he should have. He has a bad start to the season, but has stabilized a bit more lately.

Dylan Gambrell - C-
I probably like Gambrell more than most. I think he is a perfect plug - he plays a safe, conservative, simple game. He can go out there and give you 8-10 minutes of nothing. Nothing good, nothing bad. That's not what you want in a regular, but it's nice to have an extra forward who can give you that.

Matt Joseph - D+
Joseph has had a disappointing season, which has included a healthy scratch. He has had some very good games, and started the season well, but for most of the campaign he has looked like a 4th liner. Hopefully he has a good 2nd half.

Nikita Zaitsev - F+
Not a ton to say. He was awful to start the season, came back, looked good, and got hurt. If he can play like he did before this most recent injury, that will go a really long way for us for as long as he is here. He isn't a top 4 D, of course, but if he can be a solid 18min a night guy, we're laughing. I gave him the + because I feel for him and he started to turn it around, but his season thus far can only be described as a disaster. That said, he has plenty of time to right the ship and end on a positive note, and I hope he does that.

What made you give Brady is an A in you eyes, then what grade would you give Matthew Tkachuk? Who has 12 more points than Brady and is also better defensively?

What would you give Drai, Robertson, Pastrnak and Kucherov etc.? who are 20 or more points ahead of him.

 

[JD1]

I think +/- is a bad stat; I would rather use GF/60 and GA/60 (which I think also requires an improved stat too because just being on the ice for a GF or GA does not tell the whole story

I don't think +/- is a fully accurate stat either because guys just getting on the ice can get tagged for a minus.

But the thing I don't like about advanced stats is they don't really consider what matters to hockey players

Being on the ice for a goal against matters to them and you frequently hear them mention it.

XGF measures goals based on shot location but doesn't account for whiffs which is really important. I've said it before.... expected goals for should be how many times there's a guy on the bench saying "f*** I shoulda had that one".

 

[Cosmix]

I don't think +/- is a fully accurate stat either because guys just getting on the ice can get tagged for a minus.

But the thing I don't like about advanced stats is they don't really consider what matters to hockey players

Being on the ice for a goal against matters to them and you frequently hear them mention it.

XGF measures goals based on shot location but doesn't account for whiffs which is really important. I've said it before.... expected goals for should be how many times there's a guy on the bench saying "f*** I shoulda had that one".

I think we need a better stat for recording "contributions" to GF and GA. Value judgements would need to be made to assign "points" for positive contributions to GF and negative contributions leading to GA. I am not sure what those "points" should be (perhaps percentages for each GF and GA). The advanced stats guys have probably already studied and commented on this and various approaches might have been put forward.

I am not sure how to account for whiffs that should have been GF and bad defensive plays that should have but did not lead to GA. That would require full game analysis of each player.