Halfway stats

jammer06

jammer06

Nyssa's Minion
TEAM LGK
Plenty of thoughts on the first half of this season of Kings hockey but first and foremost here's the lay of the land according to the numbers:


Overall record 22-13-6 50 pts on pace for 100 points 0.610 by percentage
Home 12-6-2
Away 10-7-4
The split home and away has been even, 0.650 at home vs 0.571 on the road. You folks going to the games keep doing what you're doing. It seems to have them playing better

By divisions
Vs the Pacific 6-4-2 14 of 24 points to date 0.583 by percentage
Vs the Central 8-2-2 18 of 24 points to date 0.750 by percentage
Vs the Eastern Conference 8-7-2 18 of 34 points to date 0.529 by percentage
Instead of the Eastern conference giving rise to the team as a place to bank points, this year it seems to be the central. Thankfully they've righted some of the ship against the pacific with 4 straight wins to make that record look respectable.

Specialty teams
Power play
The kings have been awarded the most power play opportunities in the league, and are 7th overall in PP opportunities per game at 3.54. They've scored 34 ppg's and are 12th by percentage. To put it bluntly we see them on the PP a lot and they are a top third team in terms of results. Good thing too since they've also given up the most shorties in the league.

Penalty kill:
The kings have been short handed the 7th most times in the league at 144, given up 40 ppg's and are ranked 28th by percentage. None of those stats are good, improving any of them would cut down on the stat Faust loves to trot out of "giving up 1 ppg against a game". It would also have immediate results to the bottom line

5v5 play
Raw numbers the kings have scored 83 and given up 80 goals at 5 v 5 conditions. Basically instead of that -5 number in goal differential you see they're truly a plus team at evens. For reference the league average is 75 goals for and 75 goals against. The kings play games with more goals, which I think everyone agrees checks out.

Those are the raw stats with very minor commentary on each typical macro stat teams would be evaluated on. I didn't include the goalie stats since they are so individualistic. I'm still formulating my thoughts on what this team is a this point. My preseason prediction was that they would regress slightly from last seasons point total but possibly play better hockey. Right now they are on track to surpass last seasons point total and i'm not sure I'm yet in the "playing better hockey" camp. Curious anyone elses thoughts while I flesh out mine.
 
jammer06 said:
My preseason prediction was that they would regress slightly from last seasons point total but possibly play better hockey. Right now they are on track to surpass last seasons point total and i'm not sure I'm yet in the "playing better hockey" camp. Curious anyone elses thoughts while I flesh out mine.
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I think if we were to split the season into quarters, id wager 2nd quarter looks a lot better stat-wise that the 1st quarter. With that in mind, given the lack of practice time, and the change to some of their structure, i think they struggled to get it all together in that first quarter, but that they are currently trending towards "playing better hockey". They definitely still have some issues to fix though, and i think the main one is the penalties, and everything that goes with that. Your stats indicate they are still a strong 5v5 team, so if they can minimize the penalties a bit, and improve on the PK slightly, that's a really strong position to be in, and id rather they have that problem, than to be a crappy 5v5 team getting by on strong special teams and luck.
 
Coincidentally, I had just heard on sports radio that the Kings were the only team currently in playoff contention with a negative goal differential. I logged on here to see that you had broken things down quite succinctly. Thank you. As you noted, that negative number seems entirely the result of that dreaded PK. As all fans if this game know, special-teams play is an essential component of playoff success. Like you, Jammer, my enthusiasm about the Kings thus far is tempered by their inability to get a handle on things in this department.

I don’t get to see the Kings play enough to speak on their specific deficiencies, but yes, I would love to hear what regular viewers are seeing that maybe the stats don’t show
 
Bottom line, if the Kings can cut down on their defensive lapses, they would be a better team. Example last night, Kupari ices the puck after a great penalty kill, when he clearly had an easy pass out of their zone, instead he tries to make the breakaway pass play. After the face off, the puck is in back of the Kings net. We have seen examples of when the Kings are being pressured and they have a chance to get the puck out of their zone and they either make a back pass or do not have enough on the pass to clear the zone, or a player decides to hold onto the puck while pressured and the puck ends up in the back of the net. Hockey sense says make the simple play, some would rather try and make the pretty play. Sometimes in the NHL you do not have the time to look around for the best pass, it just needs to get out. Situational awareness.

These mistakes are easily resolved, take what the opposition gives you.

Coach of the year!
 
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Speaking of stats... I saw that Fiala leads the team with 39 points and Kopi has 30. If this keeps up, Fiala will dethrone Kopi for the first time ever as far as team leaders at the end of the season goes right?

I could be wrong but it feels like Kopi has been on top ever since he debuted in the NHL. Previous team leader in points used to be like Lubo or Cammy.
 
TooCool said:
Speaking of stats... I saw that Fiala leads the team with 39 points and Kopi has 30. If this keeps up, Fiala will dethrone Kopi for the first time ever as far as team leaders at the end of the season goes right?

I could be wrong but it feels like Kopi has been on top ever since he debuted in the NHL. Previous team leader in points used to be like Lubo or Cammy.
Click to expand...

Almost. Carter led the team with points back in 2016-17. Carter had 66; Kopi had 52.
 
I thought the Kings looked "lost" for about the first 2 months of the season. Playing wide open/free wheeling, soft goals given up, atrocious D zone coverage, zero system, almost pond hockey like. That is why I was so adamant about showing TM the door. Team was playing with no structure and just "winging it." The result was that you saw the 9-8, 7-6, 6-5, etc games. Since they have gone back to their structure and the system that was successful last year you have seen more of the 3-2, 4-2, 4-1 games. If you go back and look at the Sutter years and even the last season Terry Murray was here, those were the type of scores you saw every night. You could argue maybe different type of league back then, which is somewhat true, but the Kings aren't a team that will succeed playing that way.

Go Kings!!
 
I think the stats are kinda wonky from a handful of unusual, outlier games. There's a bunch of 6-1, 5-2, 9-8. 5-0. 6-0 games in there skewing the GF/GA numbers.

The emergence of Copley seems to have had a steadying influence and calmed down the wild inconsistency which helped return them to better system play.

If that continues and we can bolster the defense we're definitely headed for a better second half.

The weird part to me is how we beat the BOS, and the DAL and the VGK and then lose to Philly and Yotes. Maddening inconsistency. That Dallas win might have been the best game of the year.
 
Kurisu said:
I think the stats are kinda wonky from a handful of unusual, outlier games. There's a bunch of 6-1, 5-2, 9-8. 5-0. 6-0 games in there skewing the GF/GA numbers.

The emergence of Copley seems to have had a steadying influence and calmed down the wild inconsistency which helped return them to better system play.

If that continues and we can bolster the defense we're definitely headed for a better second half.

The weird part to me is how we beat the BOS, and the DAL and the VGK and then lose to Philly and Yotes. Maddening inconsistency. That Dallas win might have been the best game of the year.
Click to expand...

Yep, those games definitely make the Kings' GF/GA "look worse than it actually is".

Regarding winning against the good teams - considering the Kings will make the playoffs that's a very good sign. Better than being consistently pummeled by the good teams. It means a high compete level and that they can keep up well enough skill and speed wise with the best. Consistency will improve (it's has improved in 2nd vs. 1st quarter of the season - mostly thanks to solid goaltending).

-----------------------

Which site offers stats that you can filter by a certain period of time? I.e. if you wanted to see and compare the stats for 1st and 2nd quarter of the season. Preferably in graphs.
 
Bollocks said:
Regarding winning against the good teams - considering the Kings will make the playoffs that's a very good sign. Better than being consistently pummeled by the good teams. It means a high compete level and that they can keep up well enough skill and speed wise with the best. Consistency will improve (it's has improved in 2nd vs. 1st quarter of the season - mostly thanks to solid goaltending).
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The high compete level is a good point, and worth noting. It's something that can be built upon and is a point for TM against all the detractors of him and there is a lot of talent here.

This team definitely has a scrappy attitude about not giving up. And we've never had a better batch of finishers in the shootout era.
 
There have been improvements, but the Kings are still not great against speedy skilled teams and grinding physical teams, which is like, most of the likely Cup contenders. Special teams are still a concern, particularly the PK, as discussed. Goaltending has stabilized, but not elite. I'm hoping to see Byfield stick on the Kopitar line and getting good ice time to get back up to speed. Given that Danault, Arvidsson, Moore, and Iafallo seem to gel in any combination, maybe you split them into pairs and supplement with Vilardi and Fiala? Could be a more dangerous mix.

Defense is still suspect.
 
Scoring continues to be up around the league so I’m really happy it’s up for the Kings as well. Best depth scoring since when?

Kempe and Danault are keeping relative pace to last year’s breakouts in goals, which was a question mark. Moore is solid again this year. Fiala is as advertised. Vilardi is a revelation and Kaliyev is continuing to grow. Iafallo has bounced back and Arvidsson could very well be working his way to a new contract vs. just being a solid bridge player. Could take the spot of a kid if so but you take that problem given his play.

This sets Blake up to really narrow in on defense and he will. Think of all the forwards currently on the team and take note that Fagemo, Madden, and Thomas are all need to clear waivers next year. No room. The window for moves is truly open now.

As for goaltending, do we see the Kings keep three on the roster at some point? Absolutely uncertain.
 
According to https://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/LAK/2023_situational.html

The Kings are significantly outscored in the second period. Overall, they're pretty even for the first and third, but a minus 10 in the second (not a plus/minus stat, as it probably accounts for special teams goals). We have seen situational breakdowns, and the bench being at the far end of the ice seems to be a source of those breakdowns.
 
Kurisu said:
I think the stats are kinda wonky from a handful of unusual, outlier games. There's a bunch of 6-1, 5-2, 9-8. 5-0. 6-0 games in there skewing the GF/GA numbers.

The emergence of Copley seems to have had a steadying influence and calmed down the wild inconsistency which helped return them to better system play.

If that continues and we can bolster the defense we're definitely headed for a better second half.

The weird part to me is how we beat the BOS, and the DAL and the VGK and then lose to Philly and Yotes. Maddening inconsistency. That Dallas win might have been the best game of the year.
Click to expand...

As the team starts skewing younger, i think that consistency becomes an issue. The reason most coaches lean on vets is because they generally have found a certain level of consistency to their game. Coach knows what he's going to get from that player when he throws him over the boards. The younger players are generally prone to making more mistakes, and i think that plays out in the numbers. Those lopsided losses usually come down to games filled with mistakes, and the other team capitalizes. When the Kings play within their structure, minimizing mistakes, they can compete.

It should be noted that teh Kings are currently the 8th youngest team in the league, and that includes having Edler, Kopitar, Doughty, and Quick.
 
xcheck said:
According to https://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/LAK/2023_situational.html

The Kings are significantly outscored in the second period. Overall, they're pretty even for the first and third, but a minus 10 in the second (not a plus/minus stat, as it probably accounts for special teams goals). We have seen situational breakdowns, and the bench being at the far end of the ice seems to be a source of those breakdowns.
Click to expand...

Oddly enough they've also outshot the opposition the most in the second period, the gap is less on the road than at home but I think there's something to your thought. Up to the coaches to figure that one out. I don't know how to compare that stat to the league wide averages to see if everyone has the same problem but you'd think not.
 
I can only wonder that if the penalty kill was in the top echelon of the league, the Kings would be atop the Pacific and perhaps the whole Western Conference. At this point, the best PKs in the league have given up approximately 20 - 25 goals; the Kings have given up 40. Just imagine what 15 fewer goals against would have done for their record.
 
The prospect of having two 30+ goalscorers is almost mind boggling...
 
The team seems back to their classic ways. Get amped up for a really tough opponent, then lose focus and play down to a lesser one. The team owes Quick some frickin' wins too for doing that recently -- not to mention when they were happily letting their goalies shelled earlier in the year. (If McLellan had the team's head out of their *sses earlier, we'd be in a better position overall stats-wise)

And am I the only one who still thinks Terry Murray when you see TM typed out here?
 
Marek shared a fun stat. Vilardi is the third best value-per-point player in the league at $33K per point. Makes perfect sense given his low contract, but still cool.
 
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