Nov 2015 Recap

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Written by Tony Pomposelli, GM Saskatchewan Snipers

For this month's edition of Inside the IceHL, I've decided to do something different. Now that we have two months of equal time in the books (that being 4 weeks of games in the league per month), how have our teams improved or slipped from October to November?

To determine this, I've taken a look at most of the stats that we track in the league, and created a stat metric to reflect this:

  • Each team starts at a neutral rating of 0.
  • A team earns a +1 to their rating if a stat improved from October to November.
  • Inversely, the team suffers a -1 penalty if their stat regressed from October to November.
  • If a team's position did not change or their stat did not improve or regress, the team will not gain or lose any rating points.
  • The stats that are compared are as follows:
    • Goals
    • Assists
    • Power Play Points
    • Blocked Shots
    • Goalie Starts
    • Goalie Wins
    • Points For
    • Overall Record
    • Division Standings

To take a look at the stats as they stood at the end of each month of action, take a look at the stats table for all three leagues here. Each league is on a separate sheet (tabs at the bottom of the document) so you can view the West, East and World individually.

Who's trending in the right direction? Who could use some improvement? Let's find out:

West

Frontier Division
Alaska Huskies: +6
Winnipeg Winterhawks: +1
Saskatchewan Snipers: +3
Northwest Narwhals: +2

Mountain Division
Boulder Beasts: +9
Vancouver Lumberjacks: +7
Edmonton Kodiaks: +1
Calgary Stallions: 0

Pacific Division
Seattle Aviators: +2
Portland Pioneers: +5
California Wave: +2
Hawaii Honu: -1

Sunbelt Division
Salt Lake City Scorpions: +9
Houston Hellcats: +7
Texas Outlaws: +9
New Orleans Gators: +1

East

Atlantic Division
Tampa Bay Barracudas: +6
North Carolina Nighthawks: +2
Washington Sentinels: +8
Baltimore Blue Crabs: +3

Lakes Division
St. Louis Archers: 0
Milwaukee Lagers: +7
Chicago Hitmen: +2
Minnesota Mammoths: +4

Seaboard Division
New York Guardians: +7
Boston Colonials: +6
Philadelphia Aces: 0
Hartford Mariners: -2

Valley Division
Detroit Chargers: -2
Montreal Olympiques: 0
Halifax Dragons: +2
Hamilton Steelcats: -1 

World

Empire Division
Moscow Cosmonauts: +1
Stockholm Hammers: +4
Helsinki Lynx: +7
Quebec Armada: +6

Mediterranean Division
Crete Minotaurs: +5
Geneva Mountaineers: +7
Munich Machine: +4
Royal London HC: +2

Oceania Division
Seoul Express: +4
Osaka Samurai: +2
Auckland Rockhoppers: +5
Gold Coast Rush: +1

What can we glean from these numbers? Teams with higher numbers are the ones who made some major improvements, and higher numbers tend to correspond to higher production and some standing movement as well. 

Teams who may have a positive number that are lower (between 1-3) are usually considered to be more static in their position, with less dramatic position shifting involved.

Teams with neutral or negative numbers generally indicate there's a step back from the previous month, with negative numbers being signs for concern because of the vast number of teams with positive records.

Oct 2015 Recap

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Written by Tony Pomposelli, GM Saskatchewan Snipers

IceHL WEST

Frontier Division

Winnipeg Winterhawks: 3-1 in October
Wins: 113-54 vs. Saskatchewan, 226-155 vs. Portland, 188-178 vs. Boulder
Losses: 153-114 vs. Northwest
Upside: Winnipeg leads the West in goals scored, with 7 players potting 5+. There's only 38 of those in the NHL. Top-scoring team in the West.
Downside: On the other side of things, the team's not blocking many shots and if the recent injury to Carey Price is lengthy, a bumpy road's ahead.

Alaska Huskies: 3-1 in October
Wins: 107-98 v. Northwest. 178-147 vs. Saskatchewan, 154-138 vs. Edmonton
Losses: 187-164 vs. Saskatchewan
Upside: Corey Crawford + Martin Jones=a tandem that ties league lead for wins. Most blocked shots in the West & second-most points scored as well.
Downside: A slightly mediocre offense, though not terrible (but looks worse next to the defense). Krejci, Ovechkin, Callahan=55% of team's goals.

Saskatchewan Snipers: 2-2 in October
Wins: 133-108 vs. Calgary, 187-164 vs. Alaska
Losses: 113-54 vs. Winnipeg, 178-147 vs. Alaska
Upside: Snipers defense is good: top-four team in blocked shots, tied for the lead with goalie wins & field the second-highest scoring d-man. (Josi)
Downside: No team has scored less than the Snipers, who are the worst in the league with 23 goals. A lacking offense is really the biggest issue.

Northwest Narwhals: 1-3 in October
Wins: 153-114 vs. Winnipeg
Losses: 107-98 vs. Alaska, 129-120 vs. Seattle, 125-111 vs. Winnipeg
Upside: Good offensive corps of Tarasenko, Hall & Smith. Northwest has allowed fewest points scored in West, and though 1-3, lost all by 14 or less.
Downside: The Narwhals fail to capitalize on allowing the fewest points, scoring more points than only 1 team in the West. Depth concerns exist too.

Mountain Division

Edmonton Kodiaks: 2-2 in October
Wins: 127-67 vs. Vancouver, 171-136 vs. Boulder
Losses: 166-159 vs. Houston. 154-138 vs. Alaska
Upside: Strong top-5 offense led by MacKinnon, Malkin and Parise. The team's a top-5 placer in just about every major category. What's not to like?
Downside: A couple of underproducing players, but outside of the couple of bad bounces that just went the other way, this team is better than record.

Calgary Stallions: 2-2 in October
Wins: 121-90 vs. Boulder, 153-127 vs. Vancouver
Losses: 134-129 vs. Vancouver, 133-108 vs. Saskatchewan
Upside: 3rd-most goals scored on an offense led by Turris and Jagr. Defense has also allowed fewer points to be scored than all but 2 teams in West.
Downside: Ten goalie starts only yields two wins. The defense is worrisome: they're last in blocked shots & lack a player with 3.5+ PPG on the roster.

Vancouver Lumberjacks: 2-2 in October
Wins: 134-129 vs. Calgary, 125-111 vs. Northwest
Losses: 127-67 vs. Edmonton, 153-127 vs. Calgary
Upside: Ryan O'Reilly with a monster year (4-9-13 in 12 games) alongside Jeff Carter (4-6-10 in 10 games). Kris Russell killing it with 43 blocks.
Downside: Very anemic offense: 13th in goals scored, 15th in assists & dead last in total points scored this year. Absence of depth beyond big names.

Boulder Beasts: 1-3 in October
Wins: 150-123 vs. New Orleans
Losses: 121-90 vs. Calgary, 188-178 vs. Winnipeg, 171-136 vs. Edmonton
Upside: 2nd-highest goals scored in the West, helmed by Kuznetsov, Pavelski and Benn. Burns & Seabrook also strong on D, averaging 4.5+ PPG.
Downside: Depthwise, Burns & Seabrook are all the defense has right now. Allowed second-most points scored in the West, despite being top-5 scorers.

Pacific Division

Seattle Aviators: 4-0 in October
Wins: 101-99 vs. Hawaii, 129-120 vs. Northwest, 199-147 vs. Houston, 141-131 vs. Portland
Losses: None.
Upside: A solid offense, a decent defense, and a 4-0 record for the Aviators--that sounds like the month of October was an upside all on its own.
Downside: While they're 4-0, there's concern with consistency/sustainable production & goaltending. If big gun Schneider goes down things could sour.

California Wave: 2-2 in October
Wins: 184-159 vs. Hawaii, 144-103 vs. Hawaii
Losses: 107-93 vs. Portland, 145-128 vs. New Orleans
Upside: California fields Steven Stamkos on their roster--and has 5 skaters on their team with a higher PPG than the Bolts stud. The Wave run deep.
Downside: Splitting October while only getting wins against struggling Hawaii won't cut it in a division that no longer seems to be a 2-horse race.

Portland Pioneers: 2-2 in October
Wins: 107-93 vs. California, 134-127 vs. Salt Lake City
Losses: 226-155 vs. Winnipeg, 141-131 vs. Seattle
Upside: While Portland isn't dominating the standings, they're consistent and competitive, and that's a large step forward from previous seasons.
Downside: There are concerns about where the points are coming from on the team, as the offense isn't scoring the goals & the defense isn't blocking.

Hawaii Honu: 1-3 in October
Wins: 156-112 vs. Texas
Losses: 101-99 vs. Seattle, 184-159 vs. California, 144-103 vs. California
Upside: Hawaii has a fun story on their team, with their two best skaters being a hotly prized rookie (McDavid) along with a grizzled vet (Streit).
Downside: The Honu has the second-lowest goals scored in the West, making offense a concern. Also, while 8 goalie wins is good, 9 starts isn't.

Sunbelt Division

New Orleans Gators: 3-1 in October
Wins: 76-73 vs. Salt Lake City, 145-128 vs. California, 138-127 vs. Houston
Losses: 150-123 vs. Boulder
Upside: Near the top of crop with assists and power play points, New Orleans is led by Trocheck. While not big with PPG, team isn't thin either.
Downside: Not buoyed by the goaltending (4 wins) or their second-to-last place in goals scored & points as well. Only Northwest allowed fewer points.

Salt Lake City Scorpions: 2-2 in October
Wins: 175-145 vs. Texas, 171-136 vs. Texas
Losses: 76-73 vs. New Orleans, 134-127 vs. Portland
Upside: Two close losses=Salt Lake City's 2-2 is positively misleading. Stars players (Spezza, Seguin, Niemi) lead the way with Toews & Marchand.
Downside: Forward lineup is hobbled: injuries to Drouin, Datsyuk, Barkov, non-production from Perry. Poor performance from Varlamov also an anchor.

Houston Hellcats: 1-3 in October
Wins: 166-159 vs. Edmonton
Losses: 133-90 vs. Texas, 199-147 vs. Seattle, 138-127 vs. New Orleans
Upside: Worthy defense with young gun Parayko's youth countering Beauchemin and Markov (highest-scoring D-man in league). Elders producing like mad.
Downside: While 15 goalie starts ties for the lead, 6 wins is less than stellar. So is their bottom-5 offense & allowing most points scored against.

Texas Outlaws: 1-3 in October
Wins: 133-90 vs. Houston
Losses: 175-145 vs. Salt Lake City, 156-112 vs. Hawaii, 171-136 vs. Salt Lake City
Upside: Monster of a defense here, as everyone but Travis Hamonic is producing north of 3.5 PPG. Led by Ryan Suter, it's pretty much the strong point of the team, though having a strong offense spearheaded by Patrick Kane, Gabriel Landeskog and Nicklas Backstrom certainly doesn't hurt.
Downside: Major reason for Outlaws' struggles: nine goalie starts, two wins. When the goalies improve (and Eberle returns) so does this team.

IceHL EAST

Atlantic Division

Tampa Bay Barracudas: 3-1 in October
Wins: 167-140 vs. Washington, 193-164 vs. Hartford, 161-130 vs. Washington
Losses: 106-90 vs. North Carolina
Upside: Tampa Bay's strong start is nothing to scoff at. They're second in goals scored & goaltending wins while also leading the league in points.
Downside: The goaltending is impressive given they have 2 goalies on IR. A few underperformers on the roster, but otherwise the Barracudas are good.

North Carolina Nighthawks: 3-1 in October
Wins: 106-90 vs. Tampa Bay, 163-132 vs. Minnesota, 143-141 vs. Baltimore
Losses: 157-132 vs. New York
Upside: Their wins are a lot like the team: solid but not incredibly flashy. Spezza, MacKinnon, Turris all very capable forwards for North Carolina.
Downside: Outside of Spurgeon, the Nighthawks defense doesn't have a real high-producing PPG player. Also, running only one goaltender is very risky.

Baltimore Blue Crabs: 1-3 in October
Wins: 161-123 vs. Chicago
Losses: 99-88 vs. Washington, 145-127 vs. Boston, 143-141 vs. North Carolina
Upside: Strong corps of Hall, Crosby & Tavares complimenting young and upcoming talent like Domi, Duclair & Draisaitl. Beauchemin star of blueline.
Downside: Lot of young, unproven talent is a risky strategy. Their defense: 6 wins in net rank in the bottom 5, as do their total points & blocks.

Washington Sentinels: 1-3 in October
Wins: 99-88 vs. Baltimore
Losses: 167-140 vs. Tampa Bay, 128-117 vs. Philadelphia, 161-130 vs. Tampa Bay
Upside: A strong defense spearheaded by Carlson puts Washington in the top 4 for blocked shots & is a strong bright side for this struggling squad.
Downside: Four wins from 14 goalie starts is devastating for the Sentinels, as is their bottom-3 total points scored and bottom-4 goals scored.

Lakes Division

St. Louis Archers: 4-0 in October
Wins: 105-104 vs. Minnesota, 142-137 vs. Milwaukee, 154-146 vs. Montreal, 168-144 vs. Milwaukee
Losses:
Upside: The only 4-0 team in the East, St. Louis has scored the second-most points in the East, along with the most goals in the conference.
Downside: Their defense has been less than stellar, as their goaltending (12 starts, 5 wins) is lagging, and they've blocked 4th fewest shots in East.

Chicago Hitmen: 2-2 in October
Wins: 123-106 vs. Milwaukee, 148-117 vs. Hamilton
Losses: 161-123 vs. Baltimore, 184-78 vs. Minnesota
Upside: Relatively decent roster in terms of depth, with few players below 3.0 PPG. Parise and Stafford lead in goals, Streit leading on defense.
Downside: Bottom of the pack with assists & goaltending starts & a bottom-5 with power play points. Chicago also scored the least points in the East.

Minnesota Mammoths: 1-3 in October
Wins: 184-78 vs. Chicago
Losses: 104-105 vs. St. Louis, 163-132 vs. North Carolina, 186-142 vs. Detroit
Upside: Game lost via tiebreaker means Minnesota could be 2-2. Benn, Zuccarello been huge at F, big reason why they're in the top-5 of goals scored.
Downside: Dragging a little on power play points, as only 2 teams have less. Also, 14 goalie starts and only 6 wins is a little less than ideal.

Milwaukee Lagers: 1-3 in October
Wins: 145-133 vs. Halifax
Losses: 123-106 vs. Chicago, 142-137 vs. St. Louis, 168-144 vs. St. Louis
Upside: The Lagers rank in top-3 goals scored on this roster with Kane, Kuznetsov and others. Also part of 4-way logjam for top-3 goaltending wins.
Downside: Milwaukee is a bottom-5 team with assists and power play points. They've also allowed more points scored than all but two teams in the East.

Seaboard Division

Boston Colonials: 3-1 in October
Wins: 192-153 vs. Hartford, 145-127 vs. Baltimore, 162-116 vs. Hartford
Losses: 123-43 vs. Philadelphia
Upside: Boston's D corps of Russell, Ristolainen and Wideman lead the Colonials defense to top-3 spot for blocks. Allowed 5th-fewest points scored.
Downside: What's hurting the Colonials the most is the lack of effective goaltending: 13 goalie starts, two wins (tied for last in the East) to show.

New York Guardians: 2-2 in October
Wins: 157-132 vs. North Carolina, 151-117 vs. Philadelphia
Losses: 93-77 vs. Hartford, 187-134 vs. Montreal
Upside: Lots of consistent performers for New York, who field only 5 skaters with <3.0 PPG. O'Reilly, Jagr, Vanek leading F, Karlsson big on D.
Downside: Only one team has scored less goals than the Guardians, who only have 22. Despite 7 wins, there's a little lack of starts (only 10 so far).

Philadelphia Aces: 2-2 in October
Wins: 123-43 vs. Boston, 128-117 vs. Washington
Losses: 139-131 vs. Hamilton, 151-117 vs. New York
Upside: The Aces have scored the 4th-most goals in the East & also have least points scored against them. Plekanec an early surprise. (5-7-12 in 13)
Downside: Philadelphia has less assists and power play points than all but one team, and have only outscored three teams in the East.

Hartford Mariners: 1-3 in October
Wins: 93-77 vs. New York
Losses: 192-153 vs. Boston, 193-164 vs. Tampa Bay, 162-116 vs. Hartford
Upside: Hartford paces the league with the most assists & power play points out East. Zetterberg, Hudler, Markov big contributors on assist/PPP.
Downside: The Mariners have allowed more points than any other team in the East, won the fewest goalie starts, & are a bottom-three team in blocks.

Valley Division

Detroit Chargers: 3-1 in October
Wins: 105-81 vs. Montreal, 163-152 vs. Halifax, 186-142 vs. Minnesota
Losses: 178-110 vs. Halifax
Upside: Detroit has scored the 3rd-most points in the East while blocking more shots than all but 1 team. They've also got the 3rd-most goalie wins.
Downside: The Chargers are a bottom-5 team in goals scored & they've also allowed the 4th-most points to be scored. Depth really falls off in lineup.

Montreal Olympiques: 2-2 in October
Wins: 187-134 vs. New York, 148-129 vs. Hamilton
Losses: 105-81 vs. Detroit, 154-146 vs. St. Louis
Upside: No team has more goalie starts/wins than the Olympiques, with 16 & 10. They're also in the top 5 for blocked shots, assists & points scored.
Downside: Montreal is 3rd-worst in goals scored in the East. Perry's 3 assists in 11 games is the only major blemish on an otherwise solid roster.

Hamilton Steelcats: 2-2 in October
Wins: 95-80 vs. Halifax, 139-131 vs. Philadelphia
Losses: 148-117 vs. Chicago, 148-129 vs. Montreal
Upside: The Steelcats have allowed the 2nd-fewest points scored, are 1 of 4 teams with 8 goalie wins & have 2 players with 10 A (Hedman, Hanzal).
Downside: Lots of tough injuries to E. Kane, Barkov, Hanzal. Hamilton's 21 goals are fewest in East, 45 assists are bottom-3. 2nd-least points scored.

Halifax Dragons: 1-3 in October
Wins: 178-110 vs. Detroit
Losses: 95-80 vs. Hamilton, 163-152 vs. Detroit, 145-133 vs. Milwaukee
Upside: Halifax is among the top 5 in goalie wins and have also allowed the 4th-fewest points in the East. 4 players with 5+ G make a deep offense.
Downside: One goaltender is always a concern, regardless of performance. Eberle and Green injuries hurt too. Dragons have blocked least shots in East.

IceHL WORLD

Empire Division

Moscow Cosmonauts: 4-0 in October
Wins: 93-79 vs. Quebec, 187-178 vs. Helsinki, 172-125 vs. Stockholm, 153-148 vs. Quebec
Losses: 
Upside: The Cosmonauts scored the most goals in the World, blocked the 3rd-most shots, and has scored the 2nd-most points while allowing 4th-fewest.
Downside: Moscow's sitting incredibly pretty, no lower than 7th in major stat areas. This team is for real, and only the recent Price injury stings.

Stockholm Hammers: 3-1 in October
Wins: 120-94 vs. Helsinki, 123-97 vs. Quebec, 138-119 vs. Helsinki
Losses: 172-125 vs. Moscow
Upside: The Hammers have been stingy on the defense, allowing the fewest points scored. Kane/McDavid/Ehlers is a nasty one-two-three on offense.
Downside: Lacking in the defense with blocked shots, Stockholm has less than any other team. They've also scored 3rd-fewest points in league.

Helsinki Lynx: 1-3 in October
Wins: 173-133 vs. Quebec
Losses: 120-94 vs. Stockholm, 187-178 vs. Moscow, 138-119 vs. Stockholm
Upside: The Lynx are a top-5 team in goals, assists, points scored & goalie wins. Some of their early struggles can be blamed on a hard first month.
Downside: That said, not all of those struggles can be--Helsinki's defense is a struggle, having blocked 3rd-fewest shots & allowing 2nd-most points.

Quebec Armada: 0-4 in October
Wins:
Losses: 93-79 vs. Moscow, 123-97 vs. Stockholm, 173-133 vs. Helsinki, 153-148 vs. Moscow
Upside: Neal's doing great this season, as is Landeskog & Carter. Close game against dominant Moscow. Quebec's best stat: 7th most points allowed.
Downside: Let's just call it October, as nearly every stat sees the beleaguered Armada in the bottom 5. Quebec has scored fewest points in World.

Mediterranean Division

London Royal HC: 2-2 in October
Wins: 81-60 vs. Crete, 169-161 vs. Geneva
Losses: 154-120 vs. Munich, 182-150 vs. Osaka
Upside: London's defense has blocked the most shots in the World on the backs of Josi, De Haan, Russell. One of 4 teams with 7 wins in net.
Downside: Surprisingly, outside of the upsides, Royal HC is ranked in the bottom 5 in about every other stat, including dead last in assists/PPP.

Munich Machine: 2-2 in October
Wins: 154-120 vs. London, 163-152 vs. Seoul
Losses: 99-88 vs. Geneva, 158-128 vs. Crete
Upside: Munich's defense is solid, having blocked the 2nd-most shots in the league and allowing the 3rd-least points scored against the Machine.
Downside: 14 goaltending starts shouldn't translate to only 3 wins, but it does here. Munich also struggles on most offensive fronts outside of goals.

Crete Minotaurs: 2-2 in October
Wins: 158-128 vs. Munich, 158-108 vs. Geneva
Losses: 81-60 vs. London, 169-133 vs. Gold Coast
Upside: A mixed bag for the Minotaurs, but highlights include placing 4th in assists & allowing 2nd-fewest points scored. Near-middle for few stats.
Downside: Crete has scored the fewest goals, blocked the 4th-fewest shots, scored 4th-fewest points & have more goalie wins than just 2 teams.

Geneva Mountaineers: 2-2 in October
Wins: 99-88 vs. Munich, 136-120 vs. Auckland
Losses: 169-161 vs. London, 158-108 vs. Crete
Upside: Geneva has allowed 5th-fewest points scored & are one of 4 teams with 7 goalie wins. Tarasenko, Spezza & Marchand are quality contributors.
Downside: The Mountaineers have scored 2nd-least goals, 3rd-least PPP & the 2nd-least points. The offense lacks some depth beyond Tarasenko/Spezza.

Oceania Division

Osaka Samurai: 3-1 in October
Wins: 148-115 vs. Gold Coast, 174-123 vs. Auckland, 182-150 vs. London
Losses: 169-126 vs. Seoul
Upside: Osaka's got a good thing going, placing in the top 5 of nearly every major stat, including the most PPP, goalie wins and points scored.
Downside: It's a good thing the Samurai put up more than anyone else, otherwise allowing the 4th-most points scored might be a bigger issue for them.

Seoul Express: 2-2 in October
Wins: 197-152 vs. Gold Coast, 169-126 vs. Osaka
Losses: 122-78 vs. Auckland, 163-152 vs. Munich
Upside: Seoul leads the league in assists, is a top-3 team in PPP, is tied for the most goalie wins, & has scored the 3rd-most points in the World.
Downside: The Express also allowed the 3rd-most points while scoring the 3rd-least goals in the conference. Little scoring beside Tavares/Hall/Little.

Auckland Rockhoppers: 2-2 in October
Wins: 122-78 vs. Seoul, 162-149 vs. Gold Coast
Losses: 174-123 vs. Osaka, 136-120 vs. Geneva
Upside: Auckland's offense is potent: Pacioretty, Parise, Weise and Domi are big reasons why the Rockhoppers have the 2nd-highest goals scored.
Downside: Auckland's biggest struggles are assists and PPP, where they rank 2nd-to-last. Also, 5 goalie wins isn't great and 9 starts is a league-low.

Gold Coast Rush: 1-3 in October
Wins: 169-133 vs. Crete
Losses: 148-115 vs. Osaka, 197-152 vs. Seoul, 162-149 vs. Auckland
Upside: The Rush's offense: 3rd-most goals & assists & 4th-most PPP. All combine to be a big reason why Gold Coast has the 4th-most points scored.
Downside: The Rush's defense is a bit flatter, placing in the bottom 5 for blocks and goaltending wins, but coming in dead last for points allowed.