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ONE OF THE LEADERS IN CORSI AND FENWICK THE PAST TWO SEASONS, MANY PREDICT CHICAGO’S BRANDON SAAD WILL HAVE A BREAKOUT SEASON. Jonathan Daniel/NHL/Getty Images for talent”, while the baseball men ask how somebody who was never picked to play a game could possibly know whether a prospect will be any good. Dubas serves as a cold-weather combination of those two sides. He combines time on the ice and on the trail with his knowledge of the numbers to create a great blend, capable of figuring things out on many levels. “It’s challenging, and we want to know if it’s going to work,” he says. “It’s exciting trying to build ways to think about it and to find uncommon synergies.” ••••• Dubas isn’t alone in the NHL, and the ranks of people who look at the sport like him are growing. If you think he is young, check out Buffalo’s 26-year old Graham Beamish, who played some hockey as a youth, but whose four years of psychology training and time breaking down video for the Canisius College team during his graduate work in sports administration helped him join the Sabres and help them embark on an analytics course of action. His path is like that of many who are stepping into the sport in untraditional roles. He wasn’t able to play so well, but he 2013-14 Top 10 Corsi Teams CF% CF CA 1. Los Angeles Kings 56.8 3888 2957 2. Chicago Blackhawks 55.5 3892 3124 3. New Jersey Devils 54.4 3223 2700 4. Boston Bruins 53.9 3878 3320 5. San Jose Sharks 53.7 4089 3524 6. St. Louis Blues 53.1 3547 3128 7. New York Rangers 52.4 3815 3460 8. Ottawa Senators 52.4 3920 3564 9. Detroit Red Wings 51.5 3309 3119 10. Vancouver Canucks 51.3 3698 3508 2013-14 Top 10 Fenwick Teams FF% FF FA 1. Los Angeles Kings 56.1 2888 2264 2. Chicago Blackhawks 55.4 2871 2315 3. San Jose Sharks 54.6 3026 2512 4. St, Louis Blues 53.7 2648 2282 5. New Jersey Devils 53.6 2401 2080 6. Boston Bruins 53.4 2876 2509 7. New York Rangers 52.6 2861 2579 8. Vancouver Canucks 51.6 2715 2544 9. Detroit Red Wings 51.5 2550 2399 10. Tampa Bay Lightning 51.3 2709 2568 has loved the game since his youth. The good news is that Beamish, whose official title is “hockey analytics assistant”, reports there is little animosity between him and the more seasoned hockey men in the organization. He has the chance to provide input on just about everything going on with the Sabres and doesn’t report pushback. His passion is evident, and that’s plenty, especially at a time when teams are looking for new ways to gain an edge. Dubas agrees that the relationship is a sturdy one. “I don’t see a struggle between the old and the new,” he says. “One thing about coming in here is that I enjoy the scouting part. I don’t just sit in the office and look at numbers and tell people they are right and wrong. I like being out there and trying to incorporate everything into it.” So, what are they trying to incorporate? One of the most popular new metrics is Corsi, which is named for former Buffalo goalie and current coach Jim Corsi, who wanted to take the traditional plus/minus rating to a different level. Rather than just measuring what happens in terms of goals when a player is on the ice—goals scored by his team versus goals allowed—Corsi looks at shots taken, shots blocked and shots missed. Corsi’s idea was that a goalie does much more than just face the pucks that go on net, and his teammates’ ability to limit (or expand) the amount of stress he encounters should OFTEN CITED AS THE NHL’S BEST ALL-AROUND PLAYER, SIDNEY CROSBY SURPRISINGLY DOESN’T RANK HIGH IN SOME ADVANCED STATISTICS. Gregory Shamus/NHL/Getty Images


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