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For the past few weeks, we have looked at penalty drawing/taking and its effect on a player’s individual production—particularly two weeks ago, where we looked at how many goals a player could be responsible for, taking into account his penalty drawing/taking totals. In passing, I mentioned the fact that taking penalties not only puts a particular player’s team down a man, but that it also means two minutes of short-handed play, which clearly cuts into his team’s scoring ability.
Before looking at this effect, let’s first look at the updated top 30 and bottom 30 NHL players when it comes to penalty drawing/taking.
Here are the top 30 players in the NHL this season in terms of penalty drawing versus penalty taking:
PLAYER POS TEAM TAKEN DRAWN +/-
DUSTINBROWN RW L.A 10 45 35
ZACHPARISE LW N.J 11 37 26
PAVELDATSYUK C DET 3 28 25
DANIELCARCILLO LW PHI 16 40 24
NIKLASHAGMAN LW CGY 5 29 24
MIKERICHARDS C PHI 13 33 20
PATRICKKANE RW CHI 7 27 20
MARTINST. LOUIS RW T.B 5 25 20
RYANKESLER C VAN 16 34 18
PETRPRUCHA RW PHX 6 24 18
DARRENHELM C DET 7 24 17
BRYANLITTLE C ATL 5 22 17
NIKOLAIKULEMIN RW TOR 5 22 17
DEVINSETOGUCHI RW S.J 6 22 16
CALCLUTTERBUCK RW MIN 10 25 15
MIKHAILGRABOVSKI C TOR 3 18 15
BRANDONSUTTER C CAR 0 15 15
MASONRAYMOND LW VAN 12 26 14
TOMWANDELL C DAL 7 21 14
MATTDUCHENE C COL 6 20 14
VLADIMIRZHARKOV RW N.J 1 15 14
RICKNASH RW CBJ 13 26 13
BOBBYRYAN RW ANA 10 23 13
JAROMEIGINLA RW CGY 9 22 13
JORDINTOOTOO RW NSH 4 17 13
TUOMORUUTU RW CAR 12 24 12
R.J.UMBERGER C CBJ 7 19 12
ANDREWBRUNETTE LW MIN 5 17 12
MILANMICHALEK LW OTT 1 13 12
EVANDERKANE C ATL 21 32 11
Here are the bottom 30 players in the NHL this season in terms of penalty drawing versus penalty taking:
PLAYER POS TEAM TAKEN DRAWN +/-
JACKHILLEN D NYI 17 5 -12
ETHANMOREAU LW EDM 17 5 -12
MARCSTAAL D NYR 16 4 -12
CORYSARICH D CGY 15 3 -12
STEVEEMINGER D ANA 14 2 -12
OSKARSBARTULIS D PHI 13 1 -12
RENEBOURQUE LW CGY 27 14 -13
STEPHANEROBIDAS D DAL 20 7 -13
CHRISPRONGER D PHI 19 6 -13
IANWHITE D CGY 18 5 -13
KENTHUSKINS D S.J 18 5 -13
ROBBLAKE D S.J 18 5 -13
SEANO'DONNELL D L.A 15 2 -13
FILIPKUBA D OTT 14 1 -13
RYANGETZLAF C ANA 24 10 -14
CRAIGRIVET D BUF 20 6 -14
RYANO'BYRNE D MTL 17 3 -14
SAMILEPISTO D PHX 23 8 -15
MATTGREENE D L.A 19 4 -15
ROMANHAMRLIK D MTL 19 3 -16
NICKBOYNTON D CHI 19 3 -16
CAMERONBARKER D MIN 18 2 -16
MIKECOMMODORE D CBJ 17 1 -16
CHRISTOPHSCHUBERT D ATL 24 7 -17
AARONWARD D ANA 24 6 -18
SHANEO'BRIEN D VAN 21 3 -18
ANDYSUTTON D OTT 25 6 -19
JONIPITKANEN D CAR 29 9 -20
HALGILL D MTL 24 3 -21
ROBYNREGEHR D CGY 24 3 -21
PAVELKUBINA D ATL 22 1 -21
Here is how the players’ production changes when taking into account their respective teams’ power play efficiency:
PLAYER POS TEAM TAKEN DRAWN +/- PP% RESULT
DUSTINBROWN RW L.A 10 45 35 21.0 7.350
ZACHPARISE LW N.J 11 37 26 18.3 4.758
PAVELDATSYUK C DET 3 28 25 19.3 4.825
DANIELCARCILLO LW PHI 16 40 24 21.5 5.160
NIKLASHAGMAN LW CGY 5 29 24 16.3 3.912
MIKERICHARDS C PHI 13 33 20 21.5 4.300
PATRICKKANE RW CHI 7 27 20 18.0 3.600
MARTINST. LOUIS RW T.B 5 25 20 18.9 3.780
RYANKESLER C VAN 16 34 18 21.3 3.834
PETRPRUCHA RW PHX 6 24 18 15.1 2.718
DARRENHELM C DET 7 24 17 19.3 3.281
BRYANLITTLE C ATL 5 22 17 16.6 2.822
NIKOLAIKULEMIN RW TOR 5 22 17 14.2 2.414
DEVINSETOGUCHI RW S.J 6 22 16 21.4 3.424
CALCLUTTERBUCK RW MIN 10 25 15 18.9 2.835
MIKHAILGRABOVSKI C TOR 3 18 15 14.2 2.130
BRANDONSUTTER C CAR 0 15 15 16.8 2.520
MASONRAYMOND LW VAN 12 26 14 21.3 2.982
TOMWANDELL C DAL 7 21 14 18.7 2.618
MATTDUCHENE C COL 6 20 14 18.5 2.590
VLADIMIRZHARKOV RW N.J 1 15 14 18.3 2.562
RICKNASH RW CBJ 13 26 13 18.5 2.405
BOBBYRYAN RW ANA 10 23 13 20.5 2.665
JAROMEIGINLA RW CGY 9 22 13 16.3 2.119
JORDINTOOTOO RW NSH 4 17 13 16.4 2.132
TUOMORUUTU RW CAR 12 24 12 16.8 2.016
R.J.UMBERGER C CBJ 7 19 12 18.5 2.220
ANDREWBRUNETTE LW MIN 5 17 12 18.9 2.268
MILANMICHALEK LW OTT 1 13 12 18.9 2.268
EVANDERKANE C ATL 21 32 11 16.6 1.826
Here is how the players’ production changes when taking into account their respective teams’ penalty killing ability:
PLAYER POS TEAM TAKEN DRAWN +/- PK% RESULT
JACKHILLEN D NYI 17 5 -12 76.7 -2.796
ETHANMOREAU LW EDM 17 5 -12 77.9 -2.652
MARCSTAAL D NYR 16 4 -12 84.1 -1.908
CORYSARICH D CGY 15 3 -12 82.3 -2.124
STEVEEMINGER D ANA 14 2 -12 79.5 -2.460
OSKARSBARTULIS D PHI 13 1 -12 83.0 -2.040
RENEBOURQUE LW CGY 27 14 -13 82.3 -2.301
STEPHANEROBIDAS D DAL 20 7 -13 77.4 -2.938
CHRISPRONGER D PHI 19 6 -13 83.0 -2.210
IANWHITE D CGY 18 5 -13 82.3 -2.301
KENTHUSKINS D S.J 18 5 -13 84.9 -1.963
ROBBLAKE D S.J 18 5 -13 84.9 -1.963
SEANO'DONNELL D L.A 15 2 -13 80.1 -2.574
FILIPKUBA D OTT 14 1 -13 84.8 -1.976
RYANGETZLAF C ANA 24 10 -14 79.5 -2.870
CRAIGRIVET D BUF 20 6 -14 86.2 -1.932
RYANO'BYRNE D MTL 17 3 -14 83.2 -2.352
SAMILEPISTO D PHX 23 8 -15 84.6 -2.310
MATTGREENE D L.A 19 4 -15 80.1 -2.985
ROMANHAMRLIK D MTL 19 3 -16 83.2 -2.688
NICKBOYNTON D CHI 19 3 -16 84.8 -2.432
CAMERONBARKER D MIN 18 2 -16 82.5 -2.800
MIKECOMMODORE D CBJ 17 1 -16 81.8 -2.912
CHRISTOPHSCHUBERT D ATL 24 7 -17 81.6 -3.128
AARONWARD D ANA 24 6 -18 79.5 -3.690
SHANEO'BRIEN D VAN 21 3 -18 81.0 -3.420
ANDYSUTTON D OTT 25 6 -19 84.8 -2.888
JONIPITKANEN D CAR 29 9 -20 80.2 -3.960
HALGILL D MTL 24 3 -21 83.2 -3.528
ROBYNREGEHR D CGY 24 3 -21 82.3 -3.717
PAVELKUBINA D ATL 22 1 -21 81.6 -3.864
Now that we have talked about a player’s plus/minus and how much offense for/against that should translate to based on the percentages, let’s consider the opposite side of the coin. Remember, two minutes on the penalty kill requires two minutes of play to prevent the other team from scoring; however, it also means two minutes of very little in the way of chances for your squad. As a result, let’s look at how much penalty killing cuts into the listed teams’ chances to score goals as compared to those same chances at even strength.
Here are the goal scoring rates per 60 minutes for each team at even strength as compared to goal scoring rates per 60 minutes while short-handed:
Legend:
ESG/60: Goals per 60 mins at ES
PKG/60: Goals per 60 mins at PK
PLAYER POS TEAM ESG/60 PKG/60 DIFFERENCE
JACKHILLEN D NYI 2.3 1.0 1.3
ETHANMOREAU LW EDM 2.3 0.7 1.6
MARCSTAAL D NYR 2.4 0.6 1.8
CORYSARICH D CGY 2.2 1.0 1.2
STEVEEMINGER D ANA 2.4 0.9 1.5
OSKARSBARTULIS D PHI 2.4 0.7 1.7
RENEBOURQUE LW CGY 2.2 1.0 1.2
STEPHANEROBIDAS D DAL 2.4 1.3 1.1
CHRISPRONGER D PHI 2.4 0.7 1.7
IANWHITE D CGY 2.2 1.0 1.2
KENTHUSKINS D S.J 2.8 1.0 1.8
ROBBLAKE D S.J 2.8 1.0 1.8
SEANO'DONNELL D L.A 2.4 0.5 1.9
FILIPKUBA D OTT 2.5 0.8 1.7
RYANGETZLAF C ANA 2.4 0.9 1.5
CRAIGRIVET D BUF 2.5 0.6 1.9
RYANO'BYRNE D MTL 2.1 0.5 1.6
SAMILEPISTO D PHX 2.4 0.4 2.0
MATTGREENE D L.A 2.4 0.5 1.9
ROMANHAMRLIK D MTL 2.1 0.5 1.6
NICKBOYNTON D CHI 2.7 1.7 1.0
CAMERONBARKER D MIN 2.2 0.4 1.8
MIKECOMMODORE D CBJ 2.3 0.6 1.7
CHRISTOPHSCHUBERT D ATL 2.8 1.0 1.8
AARONWARD D ANA 2.4 0.9 1.5
SHANEO'BRIEN D VAN 2.9 1.0 1.9
ANDYSUTTON D OTT 2.5 0.8 1.7
JONIPITKANEN D CAR 2.3 0.9 1.4
HALGILL D MTL 2.1 0.5 1.6
ROBYNREGEHR D CGY 2.2 1.0 1.2
PAVELKUBINA D ATL 2.8 1.0 1.8
As you can see, the rate difference in terms of scoring even strength and short-handed is quite significant. Here are the above numbers in terms of percentages—meaning how much worse of a percentage chance a team has to score when down for two minutes as opposed to playing at even strength:
Legend:
ESG/60: Goals per 60 mins at ES
PKG/60: Goals per 60 mins at PK
%ScoringDecrease: Percentage decrease in scoring
PLAYER POS TEAM ESG/60 PKG/60 DIFFERENCE %ScoringDecrease
JACKHILLEN D NYI 2.3 1.0 1.3 56%
ETHANMOREAU LW EDM 2.3 0.7 1.6 69%
MARCSTAAL D NYR 2.4 0.6 1.8 75%
CORYSARICH D CGY 2.2 1.0 1.2 54%
STEVEEMINGER D ANA 2.4 0.9 1.5 62%
OSKARSBARTULIS D PHI 2.4 0.7 1.7 70%
RENEBOURQUE LW CGY 2.2 1.0 1.2 54%
STEPHANEROBIDAS D DAL 2.4 1.3 1.1 45%
CHRISPRONGER D PHI 2.4 0.7 1.7 70%
IANWHITE D CGY 2.2 1.0 1.2 54%
KENTHUSKINS D S.J 2.8 1.0 1.8 64%
ROBBLAKE D S.J 2.8 1.0 1.8 64%
SEANO'DONNELL D L.A 2.4 0.5 1.9 79%
FILIPKUBA D OTT 2.5 0.8 1.7 68%
RYANGETZLAF C ANA 2.4 0.9 1.5 62%
CRAIGRIVET D BUF 2.5 0.6 1.9 76%
RYANO'BYRNE D MTL 2.1 0.5 1.6 76%
SAMILEPISTO D PHX 2.4 0.4 2.0 83%
MATTGREENE D L.A 2.4 0.5 1.9 79%
ROMANHAMRLIK D MTL 2.1 0.5 1.6 76%
NICKBOYNTON D CHI 2.7 1.7 1.0 37%
CAMERONBARKER D MIN 2.2 0.4 1.8 81%
MIKECOMMODORE D CBJ 2.3 0.6 1.7 73%
CHRISTOPHSCHUBERT D ATL 2.8 1.0 1.8 64%
AARONWARD D ANA 2.4 0.9 1.5 62%
SHANEO'BRIEN D VAN 2.9 1.0 1.9 65%
ANDYSUTTON D OTT 2.5 0.8 1.7 68%
JONIPITKANEN D CAR 2.3 0.9 1.4 60%
HALGILL D MTL 2.1 0.5 1.6 76%
ROBYNREGEHR D CGY 2.2 1.0 1.2 54%
PAVELKUBINA D ATL 2.8 1.0 1.8 64%
You can really see how important penalty taking is over the course of a game and, more importantly, over the course of a season. Percentages dictate that Dustin Brown’s penalty taking ability should lead to more than seven goals in a season. Conversely, based on the percentages, Flames forward Rene Bourque—a forward amongst a list dominated by defensemen—should cost his team 2.3 goals against with his lack of discipline. Moreover, when Bourque puts the Flames down a man, Calgary’s odds of scoring decrease by about 54 percent from even strength levels to penalty killing levels. So, not only does Bourque hurt his team’s goals against, he also hurts his team’s goals for.
The next time someone says to you, "Well, at least that was a good penalty," maybe you want to speak up and make them think twice.
As always, a big thank you to Gabe Desjardins for the statistics you see above
Richard Pollock is Editor for the hockey website Illegal Curve. | 
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