Everyone in hockey loves to talk about statistics. Who scored the most goals last season? Who has the most power-play points? Who has improved the most since the previous season?
While statistics are important, they can also be misleading. Two factors that can affect a team’s stats are a players’ share of ice time and his linemates. Let’s take a quick look at what these two factors mean.
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Players’ Share of Ice Time
One factor that can affect a team’s stats is the amount of ice time that each skater gets. The more ice time a player gets, the more opportunities he has to score points. If you take a look at NHL leaderboards, you will notice that the amount of ice time that players accumulate is directly related to their stats. The higher the number, the better. Let’s take a look at some of the top fantasy players from last season and how much playing time they had.
- Evgeni Malkin – 2,385 minutes
- Jamie Benn – 2,364 minutes
- Patrick Kane – 2,331 minutes
- Leon Draisaitl – 2,326 minutes
- Auston Matthews – 2,318 minutes
- John Tavares – 2,312 minutes
Based on these five players’ statistics, we can clearly see that they all had decent seasons. However, looking at the amount of ice time that these players got last season, we can also see that Malkin, Benn, and Kane all had rather large shares of ice time. With an average of 27.4 minutes a game, it’s no wonder that these three players had such great fantasy campaigns. While it’s always a great idea to play against the odds and take a chance on a relatively unknown player, if you are starting a fantasy league, it’s important to consider how much ice time you should give each player.
Linemates
Another factor that can affect a team’s stats is its linemates. If a player is on a line with another talented player, he is more likely to score compared to when he is with a less talented player. When it comes to fantasy hockey, the performance of a player’s linemates can also be a source of statistical analysis. The better the linemates a player has, the better his chance at producing good fantasy stats. Let’s take a look at the five players listed above and how much better their linemates were compared to the rest of the league.
- Malkin – 37 goals for (17 goals in 23 games with Malkin)
- Benn – 29 goals for (13 goals in 23 games with Benn)
- Kane – 24 goals for (13 goals in 22 games with Kane)
- Draisaitl – 21 goals for (11 goals in 22 games with Draisaitl)
- Matthews – 15 goals for (12 goals in 22 games with Matthews)
- Tavares – 18 goals for (11 goals in 23 games with Tavares)
Based on these statistics, we can clearly see that all of the players had extremely good linemates. In some cases, their linemates were so good that they outscored the player himself. While we always advise against picking players based on statistics alone, sometimes it’s just not possible. If you are in a dynasty league and can afford to spend a premium price on a player, then go for it, but in case you are looking for some depth in your league, stick with players with good statistical profiles.