In hockey, a break is defined as a stoppage in play caused by either a penalty or injury to a player. These breaks provide the opposing team with a chance to regroup and counter-attack. While some teams try to keep the action going as quickly as possible, others prefer to create opportunities for their own players by taking a time out.
Some teams rely heavily on their power play in terms of scoring chances, while others prefer to maintain a high puck possession game both ways. Regardless of your strategy, it is important to consider how many breaks each team gets in each period. Because the break will disrupt the flow of your game, you don’t want to waste any time during the break, so it is important to find the right balance between playing and pausing the action.
Table of Contents
Are The Habs Better Than The Bruins Overall?
Before we get into analyzing the number of breaks each team gets, it is important to consider the size of the teams. If you thought the Stanley Cup Finals were an entertaining matchup, just wait till you see how many players are on the ice during the regular season! When it comes to comparing the Habs to the Bruins, it is crucial to keep in mind that the Bruins have a nearly four-times-larger roster. Although they may only have two or three players who work hard during the game, the difference in personnel is significant.
The disparity in size between these two teams makes comparing the number of breaks they receive rather difficult. While the Bruins often face three or four-minute penalties per game, the Habs receive two or three majors per game on average. If we were to make a direct comparison and conclude that the Habs are better overall, we would be giving the advantage to the Bruins. However, if we adjust for the size difference and conclude that the Habs are worse overall, the disparity in penalties is apparent – the Habs receive significantly fewer total penalties per game than the Bruins do!
Even though the size difference between these two teams makes comparing their relative performance difficult, there are certainly individual stats that can be used to make an accurate comparison. The key is to look at the distribution of the individual stats among the players on their respective rosters.
How Many Penalties Does The Habs Play With?
Another important consideration when it comes to analyzing the number of breaks each team gets is the penalties they draw. Although the Canadiens are quite penalized, mainly due to the numerous face-offs that they engage in, when comparing the amount of penalties they accrue to the number of games they play, it seems that the Habs play with fewer than expected penalties. In fact, they are one of the few teams that don’t draw an overwhelming number of penalties per game. On average, the Habs commit 1.68 penalties per game – a figure that puts them in the 23rd percentile of all NHL teams.
If we compare the amount of penalties the Canadiens commit to the number of games they win, it is apparent that their high penalty-drawing tendency hurts them in this respect. Based on their performance, it would be advisable for the Habs to play with fewer penalties if at all possible.
Does The Canes Or The Wings Play With Fewer Penalties?
In terms of total penalties, it is rather difficult to compare the Hurricanes and the Red Wings as they each have a rather small roster and play a style that doesn’t encourage a lot of penalties. While the Hurricanes are quite a disciplined team and don’t draw many penalties, they still manage to accrue 3.5 penalties per game – enough to put them in the 23rd percentile of all NHL teams. The situation is similar for the Wings, who only draw 2.0 penalties per game and place themselves in the 24th percentile.
When we compare the performance of these two teams to their roster size, it is rather evident that the size difference plays a key role in determining how many penalties they will draw. If we adjust for the number of games they have played and compare them to other teams in their respective conferences, it is clear that the Hurricanes and the Wings haven’t played with many penalties – in fact, they haven’t even played with the same amount of penalties as the Panthers in the NHL. This being said, keep in mind that all three teams are rather short-handed and don’t have the best of luck when it comes to keeping their star players healthy. This could also explain why the teams haven’t played with many penalties – both the Hurricanes and the Wings depend heavily on their defense, while the Panthers usually score a lot of goals, so they have to play a more offensive style to give their attack a better chance at producing results.
The correlation between penalties and wins is rather straightforward as there are numerous studies that have shown a direct link between the two. Therefore, the fewer penalties a team draws, the better their chances of winning. As a general rule of thumb, playing with fewer penalties can increase your chance of winning by 5% on average.
How Effective Is The Habs Defense?
An important factor that determines how effective each team’s defense is is how they perform in keeping the other team’s number one line, especially the top scoring one, in check. While the Canadiens defense is rather effective in this respect, mainly due to the presence of Shea Weber and Andrei Markov on the blue line, allowing only 2.38 goals per game, when we compare it to their other stats, it doesn’t seem that the Habs have outperformed their odds. In fact, they only have the 13th best defense in the league when it comes to preventing the other team’s offense – the Panthers have played one more game than the Habs, so it would be unwise to judge how well they have performed based on this statistic alone.
Another important consideration when judging the effectiveness of a defense is how they perform in preventing high-danger scoring chances. Although the Canadiens defense doesn’t have the highest success rate, mainly due to the high quantity of high-danger chances that they accrue, the Habs defense has the 12th best chance at preventing high-danger scoring chances – the Flames have played one more game than the Habs, so it would be unwise to judge how well they have performed based on this statistic alone, either.
When comparing these two teams, it is rather evident that the Habs defense isn’t as good as it could be. First of all, the defense is rather unstable, which is probably due to the fact that it doesn’t have very large or experienced defensemen. We can attribute this factor to the fact that Max Pacioretty and P.K. Subban each had to adjust to the NHL after spending the majority of their careers in the AHL – this includes learning to play a more mature game and using their body more effectively. Also, the defense relies heavily on its goaltending for success, which can also be attributed to the fact that Carey Price and Michel Therrien weren’t able to form a strong bond during the 2015-16 season – Price was traded in November and Therrien was fired in April. The team then brought in Al Montoya to lead the way for the Canadiens, who had never previously served as a backup goaltender.
Based on these facts, it would be unwise to judge how effective the Habs defense is until the next season – hopefully, they will have a better chance at establishing a strong bond with their new goaltender, as well as having more time to integrate their young defensemen.
What Is The Goalie Transition Like In The AHL?
As the name implies, the goalie transition phase is the period during which the goaltenders play an important role in developing their young arms – the majority of NHL goalies are either native-born or American-born, which makes them eligible to play for the U.S. The American Hockey League provides a much needed challenge for the NHL goalies, who must adapt to the smaller ice size and establish themselves as the starter for their team.
When we compare the goalie transition in the AHL to that of the NHL, it is rather clear that the two are entirely different animals – the AHL is composed of more or less veteran players who have either been in the league for a while or who played at a higher level than the minors and are looking to establish themselves as the starter for their team. For the most part, this presents a much easier transition for the goalie, who doesn’t have to deal with the pressure of being a top-notch player in the NHL. The biggest key to a smooth transition is for the goalie to come in and perform well on a low volume of shots – if they don’t, it could spell trouble for the starting goaltender in the NHL. This is why it is important to establish a good rapport with your coaches, who will be able to help you through this transition phase and establish yourself as the starter for the team.