garret9
AKA#VitoCorrelationi
For D men? Or has the idea they are different been debunked?
That may be when improvement levels off but then there is a plateau period, not an immediate decline.
Also, the avg numbers include all those players who just weren't all that good to begin with. I think the numbers are different for better players, no?
The peak for forwards, defenders, and goalies are at the same point. It's a false idea that has been perpetuated as common knowledge that defenders take longer to develop.
The only thing different with defenders is that they tend to enter the NHL later and there is no evidence supporting coaches/GMs in that decision. It's likely just because if a dman makes a mistake you notice the negative outcomes more, so decision makers are more averse to risk to a fault and tend to go with the devil they know vs the one they don't. (See Niku)
As to plateauing, anyone can and cannot plateau. The curve for the average of the population however does not really plateau. That said, coaches being slow in trusting/reacting to youth performance causes ice time to counter act that slow down that happens after the peak. For example: P/60 peaks around 24-25 but ppg used to peak at around 28-29. You would see a similar gap in WAR/60 vs WAR, or CD/60 vs CD or CF%.
Note: Analytics, the speed of the modern game, and whatnot has started to shift the league slightly towards being a more efficient league... so the P/60 vs PPG peak gaps is likely not as what it once was.