If you see Jordan
by Hooks Orpik on Nov 2, 2009 6:45 AM EST
9 comments
When the Penguins announced last week that scoring champion Evgeni Malkin would be out of the lineup for 2-3 weeks with a shoulder strain, it was seen in part as an opportunity for Jordan Staal to step into a larger role. And that's been true: Staal's averaged 23 and a half minutes in the two games that Malkin's been out. So far though zero points and a combined five shots on goal. The Penguins are going to need Staal to take the most of this opportunity to produce points.
Production hasn't always been a priority for the 21 year old. Behind Malkin and Sidney Crosby on the depth chart, the Penguins haven't always asked Staal for that big of a scoring role, as you can tell from some of his linemates. A shift in philosophy may have begun: last year Staal was playing 3:38 short-handed time (and was the only regular forward that played more than 2:40 per game in SH time). This young season Staal is averaging 3:05 SH ice-time on a regular unit, but other forwards have more than him (Matt Cooke - 3:17, Craig Adams - 3:11). It seems like the Pens are trying to shift Staal's minutes away from more of a shutdown to give him a chance to create more offense.
That coach Dan Bylsma was shifting Staal on occasion up to Malkin's line showed the Pens were willing to be flexible and catch some opponents in tough spots by shading Staal up and down the lines at any given time.
Slow starts, it should be pointed out, have been nothing new for Staal: in 2008-09 he had zero goals and three assists in October. The year prior Staal registered just one goal and one assist in October. Perhaps the road-swing will do Staal some good too, for whatever reason he's scored 43 of his career 66 goals (65%) away from Pittsburgh.
His role has gradually been changing, and now is the time the Penguins are leaning on Staal. It'll be interesting to see how he can respond to this opportunity to fill in some of the gaps with Malkin out of the lineup.
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First comment/post!
As a Penguins fan, I have just come to grips that he is not going to be a points producer in the short term (though I think it will eventually come). What he does bring is a level of physical consistency night in and night out that makes the Penguins very hard to play against. I think he is currently the forward equivalent of Brooks Orpik. Evaluating what he is doing in Malkin’s absence is going to be tough, especially with his linemate Tyler Kennedy also out. Along those lines, I also think, unlike Malkin and Sid, Staal needs to have a familiarity and ‘level of comfort’ with his linemates. He’s not the world class talent that Sid and Geno are (yet), and I think that one of the last phases of the maturation process for him will be “adaptability”.
Side note: Another thing I’ve noticed with Staal…he’s a really wild (alternatively, he could be trying to be too fine) shooter. I’d guestimate he misses the net 50% of the time he shoots.
by Uncle Yorgi on Nov 2, 2009 11:16 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
Welcome aboard Uncle Yorgi.
I agree with the assessment that he’s not the sort of superstar that Malkin and Sid are but I also don’t think he’s on the same level as them. This isn’t meant as an insult in any way because I really feel Jordan has gained more and more talent with each season. But he’s not the sort of cut corners, dip/dive/dodge sort of player that Geno and Sid display on a regular basis.
He is, however, a solid threat on the PK and a really good chippy forward. So yeah, I definitely agree with labeling him the Brooks Orpik of the forwards.
As for his shooting wide – yes, I’m glad I’m not the only one. But as I tried to sarcastically explain to a Leafs fan who started noticing the same thing, I think the nets in Thunder Bay are just a bit bigger.
Follow the Penguins on SBN @ Pensburgh.com and twitter.
by FrankD on Nov 2, 2009 11:28 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
lol love the name. Almost as good as whoownthechiefs. Staal by trade is not a goal scorer, and hasn’t needed to be with Geno and Sid on the ice, but remember his shorthanded breakaway goal in game 6. I sure do. Hopefully he will rise to the occasion, I think he will, but there will definetly be less scoring because frankly he just isn’t geno. Hopefully well see TK back soon and increased production from people like Guerin, Pascal “brick hands” Dupuis, and maybe Borque will finally score a goal. BTW this is my 3rd post.
by stoopidtom on Nov 2, 2009 3:33 PM EST via mobile reply actions 0 recs
My opinion
Once TK comes back, Jordan will be reporting for duty sir and you can take that to the bank LOL!!
by vickiep4 on Nov 2, 2009 4:36 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
Good to have new faces around (hehe, says one 2 month-old Pensburgher:)
But I’ll play the opposition here without disagreeing with most things you said… Just taking a closer look at some detailed stats (I love stats:) and how Staal ranks in some lesser known categories among Pens forwards:
Points per minute played: 11th (out of 14) nearly on the same productivity level as Bourque and more than 2 times less than his normally-linemate TK
Shots blocked per minute played: 10th – behind both Crosby and Malkin
Hits per minute played: 9th – followed by Sid, Geno, Guerin and TK
Takeaway/Giveaway ratio: 3rd – with 3 Takeaways for every Giveaway he makes, the defensive category where he does better
I just wanted to support my cause that although “everything that is written above” he needs to be better offensively, because he can hardly be called a defensive specialist (see. Adams, Dupuis and Cooke)
You have to see it for yourself...
by Bla Razor on Nov 2, 2009 4:51 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
See I’m not a big stat guy. I mean, there are certain stats you can’t deny like when a goalie is 10-2. Hard to say he’s not off to a good start. But then I start to dismiss little stats like when a guy is 1-for-5 on the shootout. I tend to be the sort of guy who thinks that sixth try will be a goal. Corsi numbers give me a headache. I really think +/- is a legit stat, especially for defensemen.
This really doesn’t negate anything you said. I just wanted to voice my opinion on stats and how I really feel there is more to the player than a stat sheet can lead on. :-)
Follow the Penguins on SBN @ Pensburgh.com and twitter.
by FrankD on Nov 2, 2009 5:01 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
yeah, but the stats are very useful – you can bent them a bit to prove the thing you want to say:))) ask me, I’m an analyst:)
You have to see it for yourself...
by Bla Razor on Nov 2, 2009 5:26 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Oh no doubt. Stats are used by analysts in the sort of way that quotes are used by journalist. It’s all about placement to get a point across. I have no issues with that.
Follow the Penguins on SBN @ Pensburgh.com and twitter.
by FrankD on Nov 2, 2009 6:26 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
If TK is back tonight I think the pens would be better off keeping that third like together while Geno is out. They know to play with each other. Staal is great in the corners and behind the net, but he doesn’t create much offense out of it. He can create a lot of offensive zone time but not many chances. Until he makes more frequent stops in front of the net I dont see him putting up many points. When you hear about a Center thats 6’-4" over 200lbs you think of a guy thats creating havoc in front of the net, thats just not Staals game. Thats why the highest goal total he probably with ever have was his rookie year when he was playing wing. His offensive abilities are more suited for playing wing. Don’t get me wrong I like Staal a lot as a player, I just don’t expect him to exceed that 50-60 point range. And I really don’t see him producing with Bourque and Fedotenko as linemates. Does anyone understand the Chris Bourque expirement? I just dont see him as an NHLer. They should have given Pesonen the look they are giving Bourque, Janne had a lot more talent.
by genomachine-O on Nov 3, 2009 10:36 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
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