It’s hockey playoff season, and giants have already fallen along the way to the Stanley Cup. Rookies are stepping up, veteran superstars are both taking over games and being silenced by the new generation, and somehow Toronto still hasn’t progressed out of the first round (sorry Leafs fans, I’d have loved to see it too).
Of course, what’s really on all of our minds during this frenetic season of heroic displays and incredible crowd atmosphere is: how well did the stat-crunchers at EA Sports get these guys’ player ratings down?
Because playoff season is often when breakout performances happen, particularly among goaltenders but also for forwards whose game-winning shots can decide a whole series. It’s a chance to announce yourself, or to turn the tide of public perception. Here are six players doing exactly that… for better, or for worse.
Carter Verhaeghe – 83
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At the time of writing, the Florida Panthers left-winger Carter Verhaeghe trails only Connor McDavid in points, and sits third overall in goals during the current playoffs. That’s a hell of a stat sheet for an 83-rated player.
Before the playoffs, we might have agreed with EA on Verhaeghe. 2021-22 was only his third year in the league, and his first go at a full 82-game schedule undisturbed by COVID, so it was difficult to pin down exactly how productive a player he was. Of course, registering almost a point per game in 2020-21 was a decent clue that he was a true first liner.
But he’s now proving himself to be a real clincher. He scored the OT goal that ended the Capitals’ season and took the Panthers to the second round. That’s Florida’s first postseason win since the 1996 playoffs. You’d say he was having a good playoffs based purely on that, except Verhaeghe also scored the OT winner in game 4. Time for a higher overall rating next game.
Igor Shesterkin – 87
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Playing between the pipe at MSG comes with massive pressure. Doing so after King Henrik’s incredible reign? Double it. And we don’t want to contribute to that pressure by ragging on a young, deeply talented goaltender. Still, the fact remains that Igor Shesterkin has not had a great playoffs so far.
He’s been one of the young goaltending darlings of sports commentary, occupying the rarefied air once reserved for Carter Hart before the Flyers netminder also proved himself both human and not immune to a lack of defensive support. The Rangers blamed their skaters for Shesterkin’s high goals against and low save percentage, but it’s got to sting to be pulled twice in the same series.
All of which is to say, that 87 rating is looking a little presumptuous. He may yet take the Rangers all the way to the cup and make us eat our words, but if the Rangers don’t beat Carolina EA’s stat guys will be doing some tweaking between the pipes.
Jake Oettinger – 82
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Staying with the goaltenders for a second, what a series Jake Oettinger had against the Flames before his Stars ultimately fell. The guy’s 23 years old and played all seven games of the series, facing one of the deadliest offensive talents in the league, and looking like it was his tenth postseason doing it.
He gave up just 1.82 goals per game, putting him third overall in that category behind Markstrom and Kuemper, and saved a total of 285 shots, second only to the unfortunate Shesterkin above. That gives him a save percentage for the playoff of .954%, putting him top of all 25 netminders who played in the playoffs so far. And he got a shutout. What’s a guy gotta do to get an 85 or higher?
Alexander Ovechkin – 92
SOCHI, RUSSIA – FEBRUARY 15: Alexander Ovechkin #8 of Russia reacts with Alexander Radulov #47 after a play in the third period against the United States during the Men’s Ice Hockey Preliminary Round Group A game on day eight of the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics at Bolshoy Ice Dome on February 15, 2014 in Sochi, Russia. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
There are only four players rated higher in NHL 22 than Ovi: Draisaitl, Crosby, MacKinnon, and McDavid. He’s been the deadliest winger around since NHL games had emo soundtracks, and even though he’s 26 now, you still fully expect him to take over the ice whenever he gets the puck.
It didn’t go that way for him and the Capitals this year. He got just six points against the Panthers before the Caps bowed out, split between one goal and five assists. That puts him 36th in playoff points as we write this, trailing Andrew Copp, Tony D’Angelo, and Vincent Trocheck. Players you wouldn’t expect to outshine Ovechkin.
Maybe he’s slowing down. Maybe the Capitals’ core has just seen too many playoff series together now and there’s too little tread left on the tires. Whatever the reason for Ovechkin’s quiet 2022 playoffs, that 92 is called into question.
Johnny Gaudreau – 87
Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY SportsThe criticisms leveled against Johnny Hockey over his time in the league is that for all his showy moves and sniping, he’s undersized and ineffective at getting back to his own defensive zone. That’s probably why Gaudreau hasn’t joined the 90+ club in EA’s hockey estimations. This postseason though, he’s making a very strong argument that he should be rated as highly as the very best in the league.
He’s already beaten his best postseason points tally as we write this early in the second round, and he’s scored two game-winning goals in the process. His nine assists kept Calgary firing against Dallas in a tough series, and he still looks one of the most dangerous players on the ice now as Calgary take on Edmonton for the battle of Alberta. If they can pull off a famous victory against McDavid’s Oilers, surely Johnny earns a bit of padding to that stat in NHL 23.
Aleksander Barkov – 90
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Listen, not to dump on prolific Russian forwards named Alexander/Aleksander, but Barkov’s been quiet this postseason too. He’s the kind of leader to drag his team by the scruff of the neck through a game, like a Nathan MacKinnon, but without previous playoff success behind him, he’s got all the more to prove after 82 games are played.
He hasn’t been invisible out there. Linemates Cerhaeghe and Giroux have benefitted from Barkov’s grit by finishing a lot of plays themselves, and as a line they look well-drilled. He’s just not picking up the points numbers you might expect from a 90-rated player. In fact he’s sitting joint-last on six playoff points at present. The Tampa Bay series will surely bring out some high scoring games, so maybe he’ll justify that number yet.
Written by Phil Iwaniuk on behalf of GLHF.
