Some Stats is a weekly feature that will run every Thursday on PHT. In Some Stats, we look at some stats.
20: Number of Blue Jackets with at least a goal. Such a balanced attack in Columbus. The Jackets just come at you in waves. Or at the very least, ripple after ripple. The Philadelphia Flyers have the NHL’s top offense and only have 16 players with at least a goal. No depth in Philly.
1.55: Tim Thomas’ goals-against average in November. His save percentage (.943) isn’t too bad either. In the seven games he’s started this month, Thomas has three shutouts He’s also had outstanding offensive support from the Bruins, who’ve averaged 4.6 goals in those seven games. OK, you get it – Boston’s playing well.
3: Home victories for the Colorado Avalanche, the fewest of any team. After last night’s 3-0 loss to Vancouver, the Denver Post’s Adrian Dater wrote the Avs’ play at the Pepsi Center has “gotten to the point of sheer absurdity.” One thing’s for certain – Joe Sacco won’t last much longer behind the bench if his team keeps stinking it up in front of the paying customers. Maybe Greg Sherman should hire a Tim Tebow cardboard cut-out to coach. Couldn’t do any worse and might bring in some fans. Only problem for Sherman is the Tebow cut-out might start pushing for the GM’s job. Might deserve it, too. At least a cardboard cut-out can’t answer a telephone and say, “Sure, we’ll do that trade.”
20%: Kris Versteeg’s shooting percentage. The Florida forward has 12 goals, tied for third in the NHL, and is off to the best statistical start in Panthers history. But he’s not taking all the credit. When asked what it was like skating on a line with Stephen Weiss and Tomas Fleischmann, Versteeg said, “Those guys can make such incredible plays. It’s just about getting open and doing stuff.” (I assume by “doing stuff,” he means “shooting the puck in the net.”)
3:28: Shorthanded ice time per game for Flyers rookie center Sean Couturier – an astounding amount of PK time for an 18-year-old forward. “A lot of young players are a liability but Sean is not,” GM Paul Holmgren told phillyBurbs.com. “He’s strong on his stick, strong on the puck and like I said, he’s got good hockey sense.” Did you hear that, Scott Howson? Couturier has a very promising future, says Paul Holmgren.