Michalek, Fisher, Alfredsson among top defensive forwards

by DarrenM on Nov 27, 2009 8:00 AM EST Comment 4 comments

Mike Fisher and Milan Michalek are two of the top defensive forwards in the NHL this season.

Our buddy James Mirtle at From The Rink had a great post yesterday on the top 25 defensive forwards so far this year. He measures it by looking at quality of competition at even strength, even strength goals against, and shorthanded goals against. The omissions on the list (no Datsyuk, Kesler, etc) are interesting, but so is the fact that three Ottawa Senators made the list: Milan Michalek (8th), Mike Fisher (13th), and Daniel Alfredsson (19th).

Having three Senators on a list of 25 players is impressive enough on its own. It's even more impressive when you consider that this score does not take into account the offensive capabilities of these players (their goals or shorthanded goals do not factor into Mirtle's equation). Milan leads the team with 11 goals, Fisher is second with 10, and Alfredsson is third with 8. Furthermore, each player has at least two shorthanded points, with Alfie leading the team with three. They also are all within the top four on the team in powerplay points. Somehow, Ottawa's three most productive scorers on the team aren't just leading the team offensively, they're doing it defensively as well, both at even strength and on the penalty kill.

A chart like this really shows how well rounded these three great players really are, and how valuable each one has been to the Ottawa Senators' early season success.

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And that's just how Clouston likes it

Leaders at both ends of the ice. I like it like that, too.

www.silversevensens.com

by PeterR on Nov 27, 2009 11:22 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

Babcock’s using Filppula, Cleary and Helm on the PK this year, so someone like Datsyuk doesn’t even play much of a shorthanded role. In my books, that’s needed to make a list like this.

Blogging on hockey at fromtherink.com

by James Mirtle on Nov 27, 2009 6:11 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

I didn't realize that Dats wasn't doing much PK work

But you’re right that short handed play is important in this list.

Silver Seven: the Daniel Alfredsson of Ottawa Senators blogs.

by DarrenM on Nov 27, 2009 6:42 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

What's especially nice about this

It shows that Clouston’s system doesn’t squash offensive chances just because of defensive work, like Hartsburg’s seemed to. I was a little worried that might be the case with Spezza, but this analysis pretty much puts that thought to bed.

by Mark Parisi on Nov 27, 2009 7:25 PM EST reply actions 0 recs