Over the last few days I re-watched the first period of the Oilers game against the Dallas Stars and noted every time an Oiler player touched the puck and what that player did with it. I will probably try to do this exercise more often this season - perhaps one period every five games - to see if any patterns develop. As it is, with only one period of data to go on we're just going to be looking at a snapshot of how these guys play. I'm hoping to see how much things we already notice like the play dying with Jacques or Staios shooting the book hard around the boards come up. I'm also interested to see if other small tendencies arise which might give us something to look for as we watch the games. The idea to do this came from the Falconer who's mentioned a few times that this exercise helped him to notice just how much Garnet Exelby would simply flip the puck out of the defensive zone and give possession to the other team instead of making a breakout pass. Hopefully after a few looks, we'll be able to notice similar tendencies.
Before I post a legend for reading all of the data I thought I might as well drop some of my own observations on the data first. I think there's something to be gained by sifting through the data individually since we'll all pick up on different things, but I know a lot of people will just want to get to the broader interpretation of the data. Again, keep in mind that these are observations from one period of one game so are more "things to look for" and not conclusions about how these guys always play:
In general - all of these guys are much better at making and taking a pass than I had expected. If one player is standing still and the other has time and space then an accurate pass is almost always completed. The Oilers defenders try to meet the puck carrier at the defensive zone blueline with physicality on even-man or better rushes.
#12 Robert Nilsson - his plays in the defensive and neutral zone are not always made with purpose. Tends to get pucks deep more than guys like O'Sullivan, Hemsky and Gagner.
#19 Patrick O'Sullivan - more than other Oilers O'Sullivan had trouble making and especially receiving a pass. He also isn't particularly hard on the puck as he gets stripped of the puck quite a bit and loses more puck battles than he wins.
#37 Denis Grebeshkov - makes a lot of instinct plays. In the defensive zone, he'll pass to where he thinks guys should be and sometimes they aren't there, in the offensive zone he'll make passes to the net without first finding a lane. His instincts with his stick and defensive position when following a puck carrier are quite good. Holds the offensive zone blueline well.
#46 Zack Stortini - strong along the boards, knows how to hit without losing position, wins more than his share of puck battles.
#71 Lubomir Visnovsky - he plays around the puck a lot and does a great job of being physical at the right moments, i.e. when being physical will seperate a man from the puck. He pinches well. He sometimes gets into trouble by making a poor decision with the puck.
#83 Ales Hemsky - there are things in the play-by-play that only he tries. Most of his missed passes are going into scoring areas. Releases the puck with purpose.
#89 Sam Gagner - is below average with his decision-making, tries to gain the offensive zone by skating it in more than most and gets stripped of the puck more than most.
#91 Mike Comrie - isn't very good on the cycle or battling for the puck. He does a good job at finding space in front of the net.
If you want to read through all of the data I've collected, it's posted below. Anytime I thought a "mistake" was made I bolded the text. Every time Dennis King tracked a scoring chance, that's been noted. All of the players are listed by jersey number and not name so I'll provide a legend here. I've also used several other abbreviations which will be explained below:
5 - Ladislav Smid
10 - Shawn Horcoff
12 - Robert Nilsson
13 - Andrew Cogliano
19 - Patrick O'Sullivan
22 - J.F. Jacques
24 - Steve Staios
27 - Dustin Penner
32 - Ryan Stone
35 - Nikolai Khabibulin
37 - Denis Grebeshkov
44 - Sheldon Souray
46 - Zack Stortini
67 - Gilbert Brule
71 - Lubomir Visnovsky
77 - Tom Gilbert
83 - Ales Hemsky
89 - Sam Gagner
91 - Mike Comrie
BO1 - "First" break-out pass. A pass from low in the defensive zone to a player along the boards.
BO2 - "Second" break-out pass. A pass from a player along the boards to a player skating through the middle.
DZ - Oilers defensive zone (always)
FO - Faceoff
NZ - Neutral Zone
OZ - Oilers offensive zone (always)
START OF PERIOD
67 NZ FO win to 37.
37 NZ pass to 77 completed.
77 NZ pass to 12 completed.
12 dump-in to OZ. Stars retrieve and clear.
77 retrieves puck off Dallas dump-in, skates behind net, BO1 pass to 27.
27 BO2 pass intended for 67 is deflected out of play for NZ FO.
10 NZ FO win to 83.
83 NZ touch pass to 44 completed.
44 DZ pass to 10 completed.
10 DZ pass to 24 completed.
24 skates through NZ, dump-in to OZ, Stars retrieve but no clear.
10 intercepts Stars pass along boards in OZ, pass to 83 completed.
83 skates around net, OZ pass to 10 in the slot is knocked away. Stars retrieve and clear.
24 loses puck battle in DZ, results in Stars shot.
35 makes save and leaves rebound.
24 clears rebound by dumping puck into NZ. Stars retrieve.
35 retrieves Stars dump-in behind the net, sets puck for 24.
24 DZ pass to 44 completed.
44 stretch pass to 91 intercepted in DZ.
44 wins puck battle in DZ, puck goes to 32 near blueline.
32 skates into NZ, NZ pass to 19 not received cleanly, puck goes to OZ. Stars retrieve and clear.
71 retrieves puck in NZ, dumps puck along boards in NZ toward 19, Stars intercept, dump-in.
91 retrieves puck in DZ, stretch pass to 19 completed.
19 shoots but misses the net, puck around the boards.
71 wins puck battle along the boards in OZ and dumps puck deep. Stars retrieve but no clear.
19 wins puck battle behind Stars net, OZ pass toward 91 misses badly. Stars retrieve but no clear.
91 intercepts Stars pass in OZ, pass to 19 in slot not received cleanly, 19 draws penalty.
OILERS POWER PLAY
10 OZ FO win to 44.
44 point shot tipped by 22 goes wide.
71 loses puck battle. Stars clear puck to DZ.
44 retrieves puck in DZ behind net, skates out half-way, DZ to NZ pass to 22 completed.
22 dump-in to OZ. Stars retrieve but no clear.
44 poke-check along boards. Stars retrieve and clear puck to DZ.
35 sets puck for 71 in the corner.
71 skates around net and into NZ, NZ pass to 83 fails, miscommunication. Stars retrieve and clear puck to DZ.
35 retrieves puck behind net, sets for 37.
37 skates puck into NZ, NZ pass to 19 completed.
19 dump-in to OZ. Stars retrieve but no clear.
37 poke-check along boards.
19 retrieves puck in OZ, OZ pass to 91 misses badly. Stars retrieve and clear puck to DZ.
37 retrieves puck in DZ, skates into NZ, NZ pass to 19 completed.
19 NZ to OZ pass to 27 completed.
27 skates through OZ, shot-scoring chance. Rebound to corner.
91 loses puck battle in corner, Stars clear puck to DZ.
37 retrieves puck under pressure in DZ, BO1 pass to 19 completed.
19 BO2 pass to 91 completed.
91 DZ touch pass to 13 completed.
13 skates into NZ, NZ pass to 91 completed.
91 dump-in to OZ.
13 pressures, loses 2-on-1 puck battle, Stars retrieve but no clear.
5 holds the line on attempted clear, dumps puck behind Dallas net for 13.
13 OZ pass to 91 in close in front of net completed.
91 shot-scoring chance-GOAL.
89 NZ FO loss.
71 retrieves puck in DZ, flips puck out to NZ.
13 retrieves puck in NZ, NZ pass to 89 completed.
89 skates into OZ, loses puck along boards. Stars clear with control.
71 retrieves puck in DZ off of missed shot, DZ pass to 13 behind net completed.
13 BO pass to 89 not received cleanly. Stars retrieve, dump-in.
35 sets puck behind net for 44.
44 skates puck into NZ, pass to 67 not completed, results in dump-in, no-ice.
27 wins OZ puck battle to 12 along boards.
12 OZ pass to 67 in corner completed.
67 OZ pass to 12 at FO dot completed.
12 shot blocked, rebound out to blueline.
24 retrieves rebound, OZ pass to 67 along boards completed.
67 bad shot blocked, Stars retrieve and clear into NZ.
24 retrieves puck in NZ, chips puck into the air off a stick.
44 dump-in (bats puck out of air in NZ) to OZ. Stars retrieve, clear with control.
35 save, sets puck for 37 at side of net.
37 skates around net, skies puck into Dallas bench for DZ FO.
10 scrambles DZ FO. 22 supports, 22 DZ pass to 37 completed.
37 DZ pass around net to 77 completed.
77 BO1 pass to 83 completed.
83 BO2 pass to 22 completed.
22 skates into NZ, dump-in to OZ.
22 pressures, 83 brings help, 22/83 win 2-2 OZ puck battle, 83 with puck.
83 skates around net, OZ pass to 37 at point completed.
37 OZ pass to 77 at opposite point completed.
77 point shot tipped by 22 goes wide (scoring chance).
Stars retrieve, clear to NZ.
22 loses NZ puck battle.
Dallas DZ pass tipped by 83. 10 whiffs on clear in DZ, results in Stars shot.
35 save, rebound to Stars at side of net, results in Stars shot-scoring chance
Dallas gets another shot hits 22 and goes past 35, scoring chance-GOAL.
91 NZ FO win to 44.
44 NZ pass to 24 completed.
24 NZ pass to 44 completed.
44 dump-in to OZ.
19 pressures, 91 helps but misses puck. Stars retrieve, clear with control.
24 poke-check/hit separates attacker from puck on entry to zone.
91 retrieves puck in DZ, DZ pass to 44 completed.
44 DZ-to-NZ pass to 32 completed.
32 dump-in to OZ. Stars retrieve, clear with control, fight stops play.
10 OZ FO win to 83.
83 skates puck back to blue line then attacks through the high slot, eventually checked. Stars retrieve.
71 pokecheck.at top of circle toward 22 in OZ.
22 touches but no control. Stars retrieve and clear with control.
35 retrieves Dallas dump-in behind net, pressure by Dallas, 35 gets poke-checked.
5 retrieves puck in corner, shoots puck along the boards, 22 not there. Stars retrieve.
71 intercepts shot, fans on clear, stripped of the puck, Stars shot-scoring chance.
35 save, rebound to side of net, Stars retrieve, bad pass clears DZ.
71 retrieves puck in DZ off Stars dump-in, soft pass to 5 intercepted behind net.
46 big hit along boards on puck carrier but 5 loses ensuing puck battle in DZ.
46 wins puck battle along DZ boards to 13.
13 skates puck to NZ, NZ pass to 89 completed.
89 skates puck to OZ, OZ pass toward the net for 13 tipped into OZ corner.
46/13 pressure in 2-3 OZ puck battle, Stars retrieve.
37 intercepts clear attempt, shot tipped by defender, rebound in front.
37 intercepts clear attempt, OZ pass to 77 at blueline completed.
77 missed shot, puck to corner off back boards.
13 retrieves puck in OZ corner, cycle-pass to 46 intercepted, Stars clear.
37 retrieves puck in NZ, skates puck into OZ, into corner, soft OZ pass to 89 in slot intercepted. Stars clear.
77 retrieves puck in DZ corner, takes hit, leaves for 37.
37 sends puck to boards for 77. 77 had vacated. Stars retrieve.
67 intercepts Stars pass to blueline, 1-on-1, skates puck through NZ, OZ, misses shot off rush (scoring chance). Rebound to side boards.
27 gets to rebound, sends to OZ corner.
67/27 win 2-1 OZ puck battle, 27 with puck.
27 OZ pass to 12 in high slot intercepted. Stars clear.
5 retrieves puck in DZ, throws puck around the boards for 12.
12 receives puck, BO2 pass to 24 is tipped away in NZ, Stars gain control.
5 retrieves puck at DZ blueline off Stars missed pass, DZ pass to 24 completed.
24 DZ pass to 5 completed.
5 DZ-to-NZ pass to 91 completed.
91 NZ pass to 32 at OZ blueline, Stone loses NZ puck battle. Stars gain control.
77 blocks shot. Stars retrieve.
91 loses DZ puck battle but draws penalty.
OILERS POWER PLAY
10 OZ FO win to 83.
83 OZ pass to 24 at point completed.
24 OZ pass to 83 along boards comleted.
83 OZ pass to 24 at point completed.
24 shot, tipped by defender wide, puck into corner.
10 retrieves puck from corner, OZ pass to 22 behind net completed.
22 shields puck, OZ pass to 83 along boards completed.
83 OZ pass to 24 at point completed.
24 OZ pass to 83 along boards completed.
83 OZ pass to 24 at point completed.
24 OZ pass to 71 at point completed.
71 one-time shot, save. Stars clear rebound to DZ.
24 retrieves puck in DZ. DZ pass to 83 completed.
83 skates puck into NZ, OZ, OZ pass to 10 skating into high slot intercepted.
71 intercepts clearing pass at blueline. 71 OZ pass to 83 along boards completed.
83 OZ pass to 22 tipped into far corner by defender.
10 retrieves puck, OZ pass to 22 at side of net, behind goalline completed.
22 soft pass to 83 in far corner intercepted. Stars clear to DZ.
35 sets puck for 71 behind net.
71 takes puck behind net, skates puck into NZ, NZ pass to 27 completed.
27 NZ pass to 19 completed.
19 stripped of puck. Stars clear to NZ.
27 retrieves puck in NZ, NZ-to-DZ pass to 77 completed.
77 DZ pass to 37 completed.
37 skates puck into NZ, NZ pass to 19 completed.
19 skates into OZ, stripped of puck. Puck goes to the boards.
77 holds puck in for 19.
19 loses puck battle, puck goes behind the net.
91 pressures to corner, 27 pressures in corner, 91/27 lose 2-1 puck battle. Stars clear to DZ.
35 sets puck behind net for 77.
77 skates with puck, DZ pass to 46 completed.
46 skates puck to NZ, NZ pass to 89 completed.
89 skates puck to OZ, pokechecked, loses control.
37 retrieves puck in OZ at blueline. 37 OZ pass to 77 at point completed.
77 OZ pass to 89 along boards completed.
89 OZ pass to 77 at point completed.
77 OZ pass to 89 at top of circle completed.
89 shot through screen partially blocked, misses wide, puck behind net.
PENALTY OVER
27 retrieves puck behind net in OZ. 27 OZ pass to 77 at blueline completed.
77 shot from point hits 46.
46 gets control, shot from slot hits defender.
46 gets control, OZ pass to 89 at side of net completed but on backhand.
89 moves backhand to forehand, shot blocked by defender, puck goes to boards.
46 wins puck battle along OZ boards to 27.
27 OZ pass to 89 in corner completed.
89 OZ pass to 46 behind net not received cleanly. Stars retrieve.
71 wins puck battle along boards to 46.
46 bad shot misses wide. Stars retrieve and clear to NZ.
32 NZ-to-DZ pass to 37 completed.
37 NZ pass to 19 not received cleanly. Stars retrieve and clear with control.
35 stops shoot-in in front of his net. DZ pass to 71 completed.
71, under pressure chips puck ahead to 19.
19 receives puck, skates to NZ, stripped of puck, Stars retrieve in NZ.
37 retrieves puck in DZ, reverses puck up boards behind him toward 71.
71 misses puck along boards. Stars retrieve.
71 separates man from puck behind net.
91 retrieves puck in DZ, plays puck up boards toward 19.
19 receives puck along boards, flips puck high into NZ.
35 stops errant Stars pass, sets puck for 5 in front of net.
5 stretch pass for 91 missed, puck goes to OZ. Stars retrieve.
22 intercepts pass in the OZ. 22 pass to 91 not received cleanly.
83 retrieves puck in OZ, skates to boards, turns, shot, puck to corner. Stars retrieve. Icing.
10 OZ FO win to 83
83 OZ pass to 44 at point.
44 shot from point misses, puck behind net. Stars retrieve and clear.
83 retrieves puck in NZ, NZ-to-DZ pass to 44 completed.
44 DZ-to-NZ pass to 24 misses. Stars retrieve.
44 retrieves Stars dump-in in DZ, DZ-to-NZ pass to 10 completed.
10 NZ pass to 22 intercepted along boards. Stars called on off-side.
67 NZ FO win to 44
44 DZ pass to 24 completed.
24 skates puck to NZ, NZ pass to 67 completed.
67 dump-in to OZ. Stars retrieve, clear to NZ.
12 retrieves puck in NZ, shoots puck to off-wing.
67 loses puck battle, takes penalty.
STARS POWER PLAY
10 DZ FO loss.
35 save off point shot. 77 fails to gain control of rebound. Stars control.
37 tips pass into corner, retrieves puck, tries to clear high along boards. Stars hold the line.
37 poke-check. Stars retrieve.
37 pressures, causes errant pass. 27 wins race, skates puck to NZ, NZ pass to 10 completed.
10 skates puck into OZ, bobbles puck, regains control, dumps puck into corner.
27 retrieves puck in corner. 27 loses 3-1 puck battle.
19 tips shot into corner.
32 retrieves puck in DZ and dumps puck into OZ.
24 tips puck to corner in DZ.
44 wins puck battle to 13 in DZ.
13 dumps puck into OZ.
5 retrieves puck in DZ, dumps into NZ.
5 retrieves puck in DZ, DZ pass to 77.
77 dumps puck into OZ.
19 knocks puck off attacker into corner in DZ.
77 arrives late to retrieve puck in corner but pressures attacker who misses his pass.
32 retrieves missed pass and dumps puck into OZ.
71 separates puck carrier from puck at DZ blueline, puck goes to DZ corner.
37 arrives first but does not control puck. Eventually 37/10 lose 3-2 puck battle, results in Stars bad angle shot.
35 save, holds for whistle.
89 DZ FO loss.
89 tips Stars pass, puck goes to corner.
71-89 win 2-1 DZ puck battle in the corner.
89 BO2 pass to 13 completed.
13 NZ-to-DZ pass to 5 intercepted
5 hits the Star defender along boards, 13 picks up puck in OZ, OZ pass to 5 along boards
5 dumps puck behind net, Stars retrieve, clear with control.
12 tips pass, but Star forward controls, results in missed shot.
13 retrieves puck and dumps puck out to NZ.
5 retrieves puck in DZ off Stars dump-in, DZ pass to 22.
22 skates into NZ, dump-in to OZ. Stars retrieve, clear with control.
44 stands up at the blueline to separate attacker from puck.
24 retrieves puck, soft shot around far boards intercepted.
10 intercepts Stars pass to the point, DZ pass to 83 completed.
83 banks puck off boards in NZ to get around his man and creates 2-on-1 with 22.
83 gives himself a terrible shooting angle and he misses the puck on an attempted pass.
83 retrieves puck in OZ, OZ pass to 44 at point.
44 shot blocked. Stars retrieve, clear with control.
44 hits his man in DZ corner and takes puck. 44 dumps puck into NZ.
35 sets puck in the corner for 37.
37 skates into NZ, NZ pass to 12 misses, puck goes to OZ. Stars retrieve, clear with control.
35 save on long shot, holds for whistle.
67 DZ FO loss. Point shot tipped out of play.
67 NZ FO loss.
35 behind net, sets puck for 77 on Stars dump-in.
77 BO1 pass to 12 completed.
12 BO2 pass to 67 intercepted.
37 cross-check in corner on puck carrier leads to delayed penalty.
35 save, puck to corner, Stars retrieve.
35 save from high slot, puck to corner (scoring chance), Stars retrieve.
37 touches the puck for a whistle.
STARS POWER PLAY
10 DZ FO win to 24
24 loses puck battle behind net.
19 intercepts pass behind net, shoots puck around boards, held in by Stars.
10 deflects pass, Stars retrieve.
10 intercepts pass, DZ-to-NZ pass to 19 completed.
19 has a one-on-one, puck stripped at the top of the circle, Stars retrieve.
Stars with control, missed shot (scoring chance), rebound behind net.
Stars try to bank puck in off of 35 from behind the net.
19 takes second rebound and clears it down the ice.
77 intercepts Stars dump-in, DZ pass to 19.
19 dumps the puck into the OZ.
END OF PERIOD