An Advanced Look: Chicago Blackhawks versus Nashville Predators So Far

I had previously discussed what we might see from the Chicago Blackhawks in the first round of the Central division playoffs against the Nashville Predators, so let’s see where we stand after the first three games.

If you’re not familiar with some of these abbreviations or terms, the entirety is listed at the bottom under “Resources” with brief explanations for your convenience. All charts can be clicked on to enlarge.

So let’s talk about overall;

All Play

What this points to is that we may appear to be decreasing in overall possession numbers with percentages decreasing overall, but you should take these numbers into context.

April 15 – All Play

April 17 – All Play

April 19 – All Play

We see an increase in Shots on Goal ratio (SF) in the third game, as well as a decrease in missed shots (MSF).We also see a decrease in overall penalties. Although Scoring Chances drop (SCF), (we take less offensive zone starts than NSH) we see CHI capitalize more on those opportunities. What this also suggests is that we are becoming more successful at scoring when we get the opportunity, but also at moving the puck out of our zone overall.

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I had mentioned in the previous article that Nashville had a slight edge over Chicago when it came to EVEN STRENGTH (5-on-5) play. In the graph below, you can actually see that reflected in the first game specifically. Even though we spend a slightly higher percentage of time with the puck, we are unable to produce enough in terms of goals to fully take advantage of that, which is reflected in CHI’s slightly lower than 3% shooting percentage.

5-on-5 Play

By the third game, CHI was no longer relying on the powerplay time to score goals. Some of this may have to do with NSH’s Shea Weber out with injury, but some is due to finding a rhythm to play.

Resources

• Corsi: For those that are unsure of what Corsi even is, it is measured as Corsi For and Corsi Against (CA). Corsi is the total number of on-ice shot attempts (on goal, missed, or blocked) taken during a game/series/season. Corsi For is the amount of the total Corsi taken by one team or player on said team. Corsi Against is the amount of the total Corsi taken against one team or player on said team.
• CA% : Corsi Against Percentage (of total) What this means is they’ve totaled up the Corsi Events that took place for both teams, and divided the individual team’s total by that number and multiplied it by 100 to get a percentage.
• CP60 : Corsi Per 60. What this means is they’ve totaled up the Corsi events that took place for both teams and divided it by 60 to get an average Corsi Events per 60 minutes.
• G+/- : Goal Differential. The total number of Goals For (GF) minus the total number of Goals Against (GA). If it is a positive number, the team is outscoring their opponents.
• FO%: The percentage of Face-offs won.
• OFOn%: On-Ice Unblocked Shot Attempts on Goal
• OSh%: On-Ice Shooting percentage
• OSv%: On-Ice Save percentage
• PDO: On-Ice Save percentage + On-Ice Shooting percentage
• ZSO%: The amount of Offensive Zone starts. The larger the number, the more often a team starts (with a Face-off) in their Offensive Zone

Sources

Stats and charts courtesy of war-on-ice.com

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