But sometimes it's really fun, to me anyways, to sit down and really number-crunch and theory-craft about players, struggles and teams as if I did play fantasy hockey.
In a season that is ripe with struggles, both individual and team-wide, the Los Angeles Kings are a gold mine for this practice.
It took me a while to analyze Anze Kopitar's struggles, and it's always been said that he had one problem: Kopitar does not play aggressively enough with the puck. To an extent, that is almost correct. But here come the fun fantasy stats that can be very telling sometimes.
Shots.
Who knew, right? Shoot more, score more.
With Anze, there isn't a lot of variance. Kopitar has actually taken about the same amount of shots season-by-season throughout his career.
His highest goal total years were:
2009-2010 (34 goals, 259 shots, 13.1 percent)
2007-2008 (32 goals, 201 shots 15.9 percent, a bit of an anomaly)
His two lowest goal total years were: (discounting his rookie year)
Last year, 2010-2011 (25 goals, 233 shots 10.7 percent)
This year's pace (24 goals, 229 shots 10.1 percent)
You compare those stats to some guys who are considered "pure snipers," and the percentages are actually quite similar.
Zach Parise for example scored 45 goals in 08-09 and was shooting at 12.4 percent. He scored 38 the following season and was shooting at 11 percent. The differences between the two players? Shot totals. 364 and 347 respectively for Zach Parise. Kopitar averages around 230, Parise 350.
Let's grab another guy who is considered a "pure sniper:" Our very own Jeff Carter. I...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Kings
