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Chicago Blackhawks 2016-17 Over/Under: Brent Seabrook

By Mario Tirabassi|
Apr 9, 2016; Columbus, OH, USA; Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Brent Seabrook (7) against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena. The Blue Jackets won 5-4 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 9, 2016; Columbus, OH, USA; Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Brent Seabrook (7) against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena. The Blue Jackets won 5-4 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports

As the regular season begins in just a couple of weeks, the Chicago Blackhawks are looking to improve on their early exit last season. Over the next few weeks, Blackhawk Up will give projections for the stats of each player heading into the season, based off the trend of past three seasons, career averages, and potential linemate projections. 

Brent Seabrook is looking to bounce back from a lackluster 2015-16

The 2015-16 season was an interesting one for Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Brent Seabrook. While he had the best goal-scoring season of his career, Seabrook was statistically a defensive-possession liability for the Chicago Blackhawks.

Over the past few seasons, Seabrook’s numbers with the puck have steadily gotten worse. While many who go off of the ‘eye test’ will have little problem with Seabrook’s game, a deeper look shows that last season was one of his worst defensively.

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Always touted for his physical, hard-nosed style of play, last season saw Seabrook post less-than-impressive numbers when is comes to possession and shot suppression.

Seabrook racked up the worst Corsi numbers of any regular Blackhawks defender last season, with a 47.4 Corsi-for percentage. Anything less than a 50 percent is poor, so for Seabrook to rank that far below that mark should be concerning to fans and, more importantly, to the organization.

Behind Duncan Keith, Seabrook generated the most shots for regular defensemen for the Blackhawks last season, so it becomes a give-and-take situation.

Granted, this is not to say Seabrook doesn’t have a place with the Blackhawks; far from it. But it is foolish to just look at his points and think everything was great all year.

Seabrook does a ton of good in his role, but after last season, being paired with Brian Campbell, a possession metrics machine, may be the best thing for him in 2016-17.

Blackhawks 2016-17 Over/Under For Brian Campbell

Factors

Last Three Seasons:

  • 2013-14: 82 GP – 7g, 34a, 41Pts, +23, 22:16 TOI
  • 2014-15: 82 GP – 8g, 23a, 31Pts, -3, 22:11 TOI
  • 2015-16: 81 GP – 14g, 35a, 49Pts, +6, 22:49 TOI

Career Average:

  • 82 Game AVG: 8g, 27a, 35Pts, +10, 22:32 TOI

Potential Linemates:

Projection: 10G, 29A, 39Pts

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There is no doubting Seabrook’s worth to the Blackhawks. His offensive skills have always been an underrated part of his game because so many see his physical defensive presence as his best attribute.

But his powerful shot and ability to see the ice in the offensive zone are big reasons that Seabrook has been a part of Chicago’s powerplay units over the years.

Writer Prediction: Slightly Over 

With the addition of Campbell, Seabrook may see less time on the powerplay units in 2016-17, but that still remains to be seen.

Also, Seabrook played the majority of his ice time last season with rookie defenseman van Riemsdyk, who himself needs time to adjust to his role with the Blackhawks, so Seabrook’s numbers and productivity should be much better next season.

If Seabrook can feed off of playing with Campbell like he used to when he played with Keith, then consistently solid offensive numbers while not being a defensive liability will return to the norm for him. Therefore, the production prediction for Brent Seabrook is 39 points for the 2016-17 season.

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