Florida needs more cold numbers from its Finnish captain. However, it does not solve all the problems, writes Urheilu’s NHL editor Tommi Seppälä.
Scoring has not been the Florida skipper To Aleksander Barkov easy in the last few months. Counting from last spring, the attacker from Tampere has scored only four hits in the previous 25 matches, and not even the first one this season. This Friday morning’s match in Philadelphia did not bring any change.
It’s clear that Florida, which started the season a bit rough, needs more from its captain.
However, Barkov is not the only Florida attacker whose powder has not yet had time to dry after the summer. About the top players Carter Verhaeghe has scored two goals, Sam Bennett one and Sam Reinhart not even the first one yet. The NHL is a league where the majority of games are goal matches – and therefore more is expected from the Panthers’ top players.
However, with good reason, the glass can be said to be half full rather than half empty when it comes to top players scoring goals. So far, nothing has been decided about the scoring positions.
Florida beat the New York Islanders in the previous five days, but then lost in both Chicago and Philadelphia. In fairness, Florida shouldn’t have lost either of the latter games. For example, it won the goal posts with a crushing 47–21 in losing matches with five against five!
However, there were only five goals available and to the names of the top strikers (Matthew Tkachuk) only one of these was marked. In the three matches of the week, Florida took the goal posts 72–27 in the 5 vs. 5 game, and the dangerous goal posts 29–12.
Bang soon
After these readings, there is no point in talking about expected goals or other advanced statistics. The Panthers dominated three matches against weaker opponents to their heart’s content, but only managed one third of the points. The performance is weak, although the overall score is still positive.
Still, for example, the opening of Barkov’s taps is only a matter of time.
The Finnish center is playing in the middle of a dry season, but not forcing the game or feeling painful in any way. Barkov doesn’t force the game or the shots, but there is still a familiar intrigue in the playing – you never know if Barkov will offer a quality goal position to an even better one or if he will decide himself.
And not scoring is seen as a weakness. When there is a place, Barkov shoots and performs the goal-scoring support actions with high quality on top of the deal.
In Friday’s match, Barkov recorded six shots, in the three previous matches a total of fifteen. The Tappara coach was blessed with a total of four dangerous goal chances in the three previous matches.
The pace only accelerated when the new head coach Paul Maurice earlier in the Chicago match, decided to put all their eggs in one basket: the joint play of Barkov, Tkachuk and Verhaeghe worked well and there were enough scoring opportunities. When there is still a touch of sharpness in the finishing touches, the numbers on the statistics lines start spinning at a different pace.
After all, for example, Barkov’s scoreless streak is the least of Maurice’s sorrows. Florida’s troubles are completely different from the offensive zone.
Defence, goalkeeper and special situations
There are big question marks surrounding Florida’s defensive equipment, especially now that the No. 1 team Aaron Ekblad is sidelined for a long time with an injury. The stern is narrow and its strengths are not in defending its own goal. Brandon Montour, Gustav Forsling, Radko Gudas and Josh Mahura the top four is size too big in boots.
So far, it’s been too often too easy for Florida’s goal to walk.
The next and very important problem is playing in special situations. Florida has scored 37 by attempting three power play goals, and the familiar confusion in the operation of the five from last spring seems to be still present on some level. The roles seem to be in search and there is a lack of clarity when it comes to scoring goals. When even the understrength has been weak (75.8%), winning becomes significantly more difficult.
The goalkeeper’s game can also be considered as a kind of question mark. The number one goalkeeper who enjoyed a whopping ten million annual salary Sergei Bobrovsky hasn’t been at his best, which has partly sanded the team’s way. In fact, one example of the problems with special situation and goaltending was seen in Chicago.
The team defends the blue line very poorly, after which Bobrovski lets in an easy lane marker.
Summa summarum: Florida is a quality team that wins more games than it loses in the regular season. And there is no need to worry about the efficiency of its top players. The quality of the defensive equipment and the goaltending together with the special situation play, on the other hand, are areas that can be considered question marks – their development will determine how strong Florida can grow.
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