It took eleven games but the Edmonton media is already starting in on Jesse Puljujarvi. This is what TSN’s Ryan Rishaug had to say on the Jason Gregor Show yesterday morning about Pulju’s game and where it looks like it’s heading,
“Here’s where I’m at with Puljujarvi, from the top of the circles in, he’s really good on that line. He’s really good pursuing pucks into the corner, knocking pucks away from defenders, quick little passes. He belongs…
From the top of the circles down, but from his own end to the top of the circles where you have to actually handle the puck, it’s not good. Not good at all. He’s had a hard time handling it with speed, he’s had a hard time making plays on the fly through the neutral zone, lots of mishandles, lots of flipping the puck over the glass, lots of plays dying with him off the rush.
So what do you do about that?”
It’s funny. From Gregor saying that he needs to change his stick or he won’t score any goals to Rishaug completely ignoring the fact that Puljujarvi has some of the best analytics in the entire league for right-wings who’ve played at least 100 minutes this year.
Mind you, it’s only eleven games, but here’s where JP stands league-wide when it comes to the fancies 5v5 relative,
CF/60: 7.47 (11th)
CA/60: -9.03 (5th)
CF%: 7.47 (9th)
FF/60: 2.25 (20th)
FA/60: -6.33 (7th)
FF%: 5.30 (11th)
SF/60: 0.04 (21st)
SA/60: -6.19 (8th)
SF%: 5.13 (10th)
xGF/60: 0.78 (5th)
xGA/60: -0.76 (3rd)
xGF%: 15.75 (2nd)
SCF/60: 7.47 (7th)
SCA/60: -6.11 (4th)
SCF%: 12.88 (4th)
HDCF/60: 3.17 (7th)
HDCA/60: -1.07 (12th)
HDCF%: 8.82 (10th)
PDO: 89.3 (7th worst)
Look at that PDO… If you didn’t know how that metric works, over 100 means the player is overachieving, under 100 means he’s underachieving… I’ll let you draw your own conclusion there.
Where he’s not shining and what Rishaug is getting at, I think, is goal scoring and keeping them out of the net. This is the only glaring negative on his number sheet. He’s second-worst in the league for GF/60 at -1.99, right ahead of analytics darling Valeri Nichushkin and NHL All-Star Blake Wheeler who both have a -1.78 there.
Ironically, there are some who’ve compared Puljujarvi to both Nichushkin and Wheeler… Weird.
So you’ve got a young player who is doing fabulous with the shot metrics but is failing in the goal ones… What does it all mean, Basil? I think it’s just bad luck.
I can understand there’s a little bit of impatience setting in amongst the media and fans alike with regards to Jesse’s lack of offense but, the underlying numbers are 90% positive. Once he starts scoring some goals, that remaining 10% will fall into place.
Should they be in the lineup, here are three players that I think you should keep an eye on for the Sens tonight,
- #63 Evgenii Dadonov – Had some very dangerous looks last time out. Was a big-time scorer in Florida and I expect him to be one of Ottawa’s bigger threats in this one.
- #72 Thomas Chabot – One of the only players on the Sens who can keep up with McDavid and Draisaitl. Ottawa will need him on top of his game if the plan is to slow down Edmonton’s white-hot offense.
- #36 Colin White – In years past, he’s been a very reliable two-way forward but this year he hasn’t started well and found himself in the coach’s doghouse early. He scored a fancy one against Edmonton already, does he have any more goals in his stick?
For Ottawa to have success they’ll need to not shit the bed completely like last time. The Oilers play the game fast and loose with regards to team defense and they’re susceptible to counter attacks quite a bit as their offense goes for goal. As we saw in their first meeting, Edmonton’s d-men can be beat wide if the puck carrier has speed and strength. They also leave the home plate and defenders open for shots often.
With regards to Edmonton, I’ll be watching these three individuals closely,
- #13 Jesse Puljujarvi – He looks like he’s getting tired mentally and physically. He doesn’t have that same zip and aggression he started the year with nor do I see him getting into the right positions to receive passes, so his teammates are passing off to Nuge and Connor instead. With Neal and Chiasson in the lineup, his PP time has been put on hold as well. This is a challenge he’s going to have to work through and all he really needs is for one to go in off of his skate or his hindquarters, right? Get the ball rolling!
- #91 Gaetan Haas – I’ve been playing down his return lately but man did he look good on Sunday. I’ve always loved his speed and unpredictability. It throws defenders off so much. Reckon if the Oilers moved him to the third line and swapped Jesse and Kassian, that Neal-Haas-Puljujarvi would be an effective trio? By the way Jason Gregor was talking on Monday, it sounds like Kyle Turris had best pick his game up or risk becoming the new 4C…
- #25 Darnell Nurse – I have to admit, I’ve been hard on Nurse these past few seasons but he’s really grown on me this year. His warts don’t seem to be as glaring so far and I have to wonder if knowing that he’s the man on defense has had a really positive effect on him. Knowing that Klefbom won’t be returning to take his spot might’ve lifted some pressure off of his back.
If we can trust the word of Bob Stauffer, it’s almost a guarantee that we’re going to see Evan Bouchard this evening. Alex Chiasson was placed on waivers in order to make room for the rookie and Ethan Bear still isn’t feeling up to par. Stauffer was saying yesterday morning that the Oilers might go with eleven forwards and 7 d-men, for what it’s worth.
Keys to Success For the Oilers
Thomas Chabot should be back and that will make it more difficult for McDavid and Draisaitl to work their magic to the degree they did on the weekend, so that should leave lots of opportunities for others to contribute offensively.
But, that’s not Edmonton’s problem, is it? They’ve got to tighten their defense up something fierce. Winning a hockey game 8-5 is really fun and all but the Oilers lost the shot game 38-31… I was under the impression that having all those puck-movers on the back-end was going to result in the team playing less in their own zone and therefore decreasing the number of shots and chances against.
I would like to see a more aggressive forecheck in all zones. I don’t think that the Senators are so skilled that they could work themselves out of some extreme puck pursuing from Edmonton.
Also, get in the shooting lanes for f*cks sake… Caleb Jones, if you’re in the lineup for this one, take note and pass on the message.
The Oilers will have this game and then their first Battle of Alberta and then another two against the Sens coming up. Calgary has already had a players-only meeting and a trade request submitted, so that should tell you how well things are going there. Edmonton needs to hit on these chances and 6 points in four games is a very reasonable ask considering their opponents.
Give us a follow on the socials!
- Youtube: Beer League Heroes Channel
- Twitter: @beerleagueheroe
- Instagram: @beerleagueheroes
- Facebook: Beer League Heroes
