The Philadelphia Flyers currently have eight healthy defensemen. Three of these defensemen have played every game they have been healthy for: Mark Streit, who has been the Flyers best offensive defenseman, Braydon Coburn, the veteran who has played well after an injury early in the season, and Nicklas Grossmann, who quite frankly isn’t that good. Grossmann has played in all 25 games this season. He is the team’s worst possession defenseman with just a 43.2% corsi for at even strength.
*All stats in this article are at even strength and via war-on-ice or stats.hockeyanalysis.com
Players further to the right on the graph generate more corsi for, while players on the left generate less. Players towards the top allow more corsi against, while players on the bottom allow less.
Bottom Right = Best, Top Left = Worst.
The horizontal axis is CF60, or corsi for per 60 minutes, while the vertical axis is CA60, or corsi against per 60 minutes. This totals a player’s shot attempts and prorates them over 60 minutes.
Grossmann has generated the least amount of shot attempts (corsi) for while allowing the most shot attempts (corsi) against. Meanwhile, players like Carlo Colaiacovo, Luke Schenn and Michael Del Zotto are doing an admirable job at puck possession and are seeing time in the press box as a result.
But Ryan, you say, Grossmann is a defensive defenseman and is expected to give up a lot of shot attempts.
Grossmann has received around middle of the road deployment, with Schenn, Del Zotto, Andrew MacDonald and Nick Schultz all starting a higher portion of their shifts in the defensive zone. Despite this, they are still outperforming him possession wise.
This measures how many corsi against a player gives up on average per defensive zone start. Grossmann is sixth in this category, behind past healthy scratches Schenn, Del Zotto and MacDonald. These other defensemen can clearly handle themselves in all zones and deserve more ice time for their play.
But Grossmann blocks shots!
Actually, Grossmann has been mediocre at best at this as well. Even the offensive defenseman Del Zotto is ahead of him with Streit just on his tail.
But Grossmann is a great penalty killer, right?
Players further to the right on the graph generate more corsi for, while players on the left generate less. Players towards the top allow more corsi against, while players on the bottom allow less.
Bottom Right = Best, Top Left = Worst.
Nope. He has performed the worst on the PK out of all the defensemen in allowing shot attempts while shorthanded.
In conclusion, it is quite baffling that Grossmann has played every single game this year. Grossman needs to be put in the press box occasionally, if not permanently, if the Flyers want to put the best product on the ice.
Sure, he has the occasional “bailing out the goalie” moment, I'll give him that. But if the Flyers played a better defenseman with Grossmann in the press box, maybe that moment wouldn’t have occurred.
I understand Berube's approach to wanting to rotate in and out different guys, but there is no reason that Grossmann should be excluded from that rotation.
Ryan Gilbert is a contributing writer for Flyerdelphia and can be found on Twitter @RiskyBryzness
