Who did the best in Free Agency?
- Thread starter StatisticsAddict99
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Black Tank
Registered User
He's going to retire due to a back injury, though nothing is official. If this is true, it explains a lot as to why his game just dropped off a cliffedge because KK is no slacker, he's a tough competitor and he was was always a team guy. To be fair, Girardi and Staal are the same, their bodies due to injuries just can't do it anymore.
They were #6. I said "Deepest" did I not? They had the most 60 and most 50 point players in the entire NHL.
Ogrezilla
Nerf Herder
So how does that make them the best without a doubt this year? I'd agree it's a really good group, and an argument can be made for best factoring the depth. But your original statement seems way over the top. Without a doubt the best?
The Pens definitely have something to say about that. Watch for both Guentzel and Sheary to be above 70 points.
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OilerPensfan97
Registered User
If by deepest you mean the most serious thinkers, you may of may not be right. If you mean the best forward group then no. Just no.
KirkAlbuquerque
#WeNeverGetAGoodCoach
NYR did a good job of nearly fixing their blue line which was a massive problem last season. Buying out Girardi, signing Smith and SHattenkirk to 4 year deals. Still have Staal to worry about, but if AV cuts his and Holden's minutes that top 4 is looking pretty good. Havent signed any fwds however... and i'd rather have an AHL callup play backup than spend money of Pavelec.
The Grim Reaper
Registered User
The Grim Reaper
Registered User
Penguins quite easily.
Throw the Leafs in with Oilers, Caps and a few other teams like the Jets. Top 5 I'd say.
Personally I'd take the Pens easily fit next year and also the Oilers. Jets and Leafs are pretty close. I think Bozak and Marleau are both pretty overrated by Leaf fans.
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David Bruce Banner
Nude Cabdriver Ban
Dallas improved the most. I like their moves and think they're gonna be dangerous.
Nashville strengthened an already strong squad.
If Mason is solid, Winnipeg might finally make some noise rather than just being disappointing.
The Canucks brought in some decent placeholders... they'll still suck, but at least they won't be icing unready kids and out of their depth AHLers.
Nashville strengthened an already strong squad.
If Mason is solid, Winnipeg might finally make some noise rather than just being disappointing.
The Canucks brought in some decent placeholders... they'll still suck, but at least they won't be icing unready kids and out of their depth AHLers.
Ogrezilla
Nerf Herder
Crosby/Malkin/Kessel/Guentzel/Sheary/Hornqvist/Rust/Hagelin
Pens do need a 3C though. As of right now, Leafs have a bit more depth, mostly because the Pens haven't found a 3C yet. But I'd say the Pens top end advantage is bigger than the Leafs' depth advantage. I mean, Pens have the 1st, 2nd, and 4th best players of the combined lists. That's pretty big.
Leafs have a strong offense for sure but I'd certainly pick the offense of the team with two of the three best centers in the world over them that recently got carried into two stanley cups mainly by their offense. Maybe Leafs are in contention after their forwards manage to accomplish more than barely managing to scrape their way into a first round exit.
aufheben
#Norris4Fox
No lol. Gave out a bad contract in order to improve an already strong area, and then payed that much for Ron Hainsey?
It doesn't matter anyway with their defense.
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BHD
Vejmelka for Vezina
Caged Great
Registered User
TDK67
Registered User
- Apr 17, 2016
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I threw the below table together quickly from data in stats.hockeyanalysis.com. It's each team's "2016-17 Goal & Point Totals From Forwards Only". Shot% is in there too and it's ranked by total points right now.
It's not 100% accurate because it's not separating players' performance for teams pre-deadline and post-deadline if they were traded, however glancing at those trades I didn't see any major transactions that would have substantially moved any team's needle. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong on that.
My thoughts:
Holy crap Minnesota! Didn't realize their forwards were so offensively potent. The exchange of Pominville for Ennis & Foligno is a net loss in points but a net gain in goals. They were also riding the 4th highest shot % among forward groups in the league last year.
The next 4 teams seem expected (PIT, WSH, TOR, & EDM) but everyone other than Toronto has actually lost goal scoring and points. In PIT & WSH's cases it's actually a pretty significant amount. Only Toronto made a significant gain in their forward core with Marleau coming in and no other major trades or losses from their forward group. I also don't see Toronto as being particularly lucky given them having the 3rd lowest shot % among the Top 10 forward groups in the league. I also realize that this doesn't account for rookies that will come in and contribute for various teams but I'm not sure any of the Top 5 teams are expecting a rookie to come in and do 20-25 goals and 40-50 points.
So is Toronto guaranteed to have the best forward group in the NHL next year? No, because nothing is guaranteed. Do they look poised to have the best forward group based on how every team performed last year and what players they've added/substracted so far? Yes.
Ultimately, the idea of Toronto having the best forward group next year is not nearly as outlandish as many knee-jerkers made it seem in this thread.
In reality the craziest post about Toronto in this thread came from the guy who listed nearly 20 teams that could outscore the Leafs. All biases aside, the Leafs proved they're an upper echelon offensive team in the league last year and there's really nothing to indicate they'll massively drop in that aspect either in advanced metrics (shot percentages, scoring chance generation, etc) or in their personnel gains/losses in this off-season.
It's not 100% accurate because it's not separating players' performance for teams pre-deadline and post-deadline if they were traded, however glancing at those trades I didn't see any major transactions that would have substantially moved any team's needle. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong on that.
My thoughts:
Holy crap Minnesota! Didn't realize their forwards were so offensively potent. The exchange of Pominville for Ennis & Foligno is a net loss in points but a net gain in goals. They were also riding the 4th highest shot % among forward groups in the league last year.
The next 4 teams seem expected (PIT, WSH, TOR, & EDM) but everyone other than Toronto has actually lost goal scoring and points. In PIT & WSH's cases it's actually a pretty significant amount. Only Toronto made a significant gain in their forward core with Marleau coming in and no other major trades or losses from their forward group. I also don't see Toronto as being particularly lucky given them having the 3rd lowest shot % among the Top 10 forward groups in the league. I also realize that this doesn't account for rookies that will come in and contribute for various teams but I'm not sure any of the Top 5 teams are expecting a rookie to come in and do 20-25 goals and 40-50 points.
So is Toronto guaranteed to have the best forward group in the NHL next year? No, because nothing is guaranteed. Do they look poised to have the best forward group based on how every team performed last year and what players they've added/substracted so far? Yes.
Ultimately, the idea of Toronto having the best forward group next year is not nearly as outlandish as many knee-jerkers made it seem in this thread.
In reality the craziest post about Toronto in this thread came from the guy who listed nearly 20 teams that could outscore the Leafs. All biases aside, the Leafs proved they're an upper echelon offensive team in the league last year and there's really nothing to indicate they'll massively drop in that aspect either in advanced metrics (shot percentages, scoring chance generation, etc) or in their personnel gains/losses in this off-season.
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