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Devils' shootout prowess


Colorado Rockies 1976

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It's funny...I remember when it was announced that the shootout would be implemented to eliminate ties, more than one Ranger fan told me that the Devils would suck at them. Not enough creative, skilled or flashy players to possibly succeed at it. Yet, the Devils haven't been just good at winning them. All-around, they've been the BEST, and by a fair margin at that.

They've now been involved in 79 shootouts since 2005. Only three teams have played in more.

They have a record of 51-28 in those 79 shootouts. That's a winning% of .646. Only one other team is above .600, and that's Pittsburgh at .620. No other team has as many shootout wins as the Devils.

They boast a lifetime shooting% of 41.4 (108-for-261), including a 55.6 mark this season. The second place team is at 37.5%. That 3.9% gap is by far the widest between teams. The teams beyond the Devils are very tightly packed, which shows how much better the Devils really have been at this thing than everyone else.

They're 8th in lifetime save percentage at .703 (.727 this season)...a good bit behind the 1st-place Rangers (.744), but one of only 9 teams to boast a .700-or-better save% since the shootout's inception.

The point of all of this? As far as this the shootout goes, we really don't have much to complain about. Not one team has performed as well in them as the Devils have.

http://www.nhl.com/ice/shootoutstats.htm?season=20112012&team=&viewName=shootoutTeamCareerTotals

Edited by Colorado Rockies 1976
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Interesting. I know we've been very good at it this season and pretty good overall, but I didn't realize we were the best at it all time. Thanks for digging up the data.

Pretty much the same here...I knew they'd been very good at it...I just didn't realize HOW good, and more importantly, how much better than everyone else...hell, even Viktor Kozlov, who was almost useless everywhere else on the ice as a Devil, was a monster in shootouts.

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still hate the shootout

Me too. I'm not praising the format, just pointing out that the Devils are cranking at it. And no one would've thought so in the beginning.

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I thought NJ's shootout dominance would end once they decided that Kovalchuk and his 25% lifetime shootout percentage were going to be a part of the team, but I suppose not.

Nice work compiling this - really does go to show why NJ was somewhere between slightly and legitimately overrated over the last 5 years.

Edited by Triumph
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I thought NJ's shootout dominance would end once they decided that Kovalchuk and his 25% lifetime shootout percentage were going to be a part of the team, but I suppose not.

Nice work compiling this - really does go to show why NJ was somewhere between slightly and legitimately overrated over the last 5 years.

He's 10-for-15 since coming to NJ. :noclue:

And yes, definitely goes a long way towards bloating point totals and goal totals. That's 51 more goals in the standings through the years for the Devils that were never scored.

And on the other end: Florida is 27-50 all-time, Philadelphia is 20-39, Washington is 27-41. Their fans must think "Oh nooooooooo" when their games go to a shootout.

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personally i don't mind, what i hate about it is the points distribution... or the tiebreaker.

its absurd that in a tiebreaker that shootouts wins doesnt counts but SO losses does... i mean seriously wtf

yea that, and how Regulation and OT wins are the first tie breaker.

So that means that "Wins," just pure wins, is not even the first tiebreaker. instead, they take everything except for SO wins, and ya even OT wins counts.

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yea that, and how Regulation and OT wins are the first tie breaker.

So that means that "Wins," just pure wins, is not even the first tiebreaker. instead, they take everything except for SO wins, and ya even OT wins counts.

Yeah a lot of it does't make sense and I am still not a fan of them.

Also they inflate the points in the standings and I am still not 100% used to it yet. I am still used to the time where you could get like 86 points and still sneak into the playoffs. Now you need at least 95 to even have a chance and making 100 is the only way to pretty much guarantee a playoff spot when back in the day you were a strong team if you got 100 points.

Edited by DevsMan84
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i mean its really dumb...

a scenario like this could very well happen...

8th- TEAM A - 41 - 31 - 11 - 38 row - 93pts

--------------------------------------------

9th- TEAM B - 45 - 34 - 3 - 35 row - 93pts

let's say Team A lost 8 times in SO and 3 times in OT... still got 11 out of it while Team B won 10 games in SO... so bottom line Team B would have miss the playoffs even if they WON 45 games and lost 37 games, while Team A won 41 games and lost 41 games... so dumb

edit: adding to the insult Team B could see the top southeast team making it with 90pts or something... so thats 2 teams taking a spot that you really deserved based on your record

Edited by SterioDesign
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The Devils have always had a great 1-2 punch of having a great shooter going first to score, and Brodeur being fantastic in these. Brodeur still gets so many guys to go glove side, and players keep falling for it. The Pominville goal is the only time I can remember Brodeur getting beat when a player goes for that spot.

None of these stats surprise CR76, as I pretty much remember the Devils always being dominant. I did forget though about Kozlov being a big part of that. He had outstanding hands.

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It does seem like the Devils have always had at least one lights out guy in the shootout every year, from Kozlov to Gionta to Parise and now this year Kovy. And having two good goalies and one lights out shooter in a three-shot format means you should win a majority of the time.

Yeah, but it's not like anyone else has been able to do what the Devils have. What they've been able to do in shootouts almost has to be considered special.

The guy who has been absurdly good in goal in shootouts has been Lundqvist. He's the main reason why the Rangers, despite shooting just 30.4% in shootouts, have a solid 49-35 record. He has faced more shots than anyone else by a lot (259...Luongo is second, at 211). He has put up a .764 save% (Brodeur is at .726 lifetime, on 204 shots...Hedberg is at .770 on 113 shots). BTW, Hedberg is a terrific 23-8 in shootouts. Brodeur is 39-20, Lundqvist is 40-27 (mostly due to poor support), and Luongo is 27-32, with just a .673 save%.

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40th shootout win for Marty. 52nd for the Devils franchise. It bears repeating: the Devils are very very good at this thing.

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I have no idea why this team fares so well in the SO. I remember Kovy was 1/9 in the first year with Atlanta but pick up here. Victor Kozlov did not score SO goals as good when he played for the Isles. Probably because the coaching staff is ordered to do their homework on gimme.

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You should read the now locked thread about this on HF.. Well, I'll save you the time and just say its a bunch of Ranger fans crying and the rest of the League's fans complimenting us

Surprised?

Which thread Colin? One about the Devils in shootouts? I couldn't find it.

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I have no idea why this team fares so well in the SO. I remember Kovy was 1/9 in the first year with Atlanta but pick up here. Victor Kozlov did not score SO goals as good when he played for the Isles. Probably because the coaching staff is ordered to do their homework on gimme.

The short answer:

The Devils bury pucks better than anyone else in shootouts, and by a good margin. They also have gotten very good goaltending, especially from Brodeur (40-20 with a .725 save%...other Devils goalies are 12-8 with a combined .631 save%). Though Brodeur has clearly been very good, the Devils goaltending in general has benefitted greatly by getting more support than everyone else.

The Rangers have also had success, but mostly because they get excellent goaltending (especially from Lundqvist). They actually shoot pretty poorly (only 30.9%, compared to the Devils' 41.7%).

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Kovy ostensibly got advice from Marty, or at least he credits that with turning around his shootout record. Zach may need to have a talk with Marty soon too, his misses keep getting worse and worse.

Re: Kovy...this season's 9-for-11 is absurd. Though there are players who excel at the shootout more than others, 50% or so is very good. It's pretty rare to see such an extended "automatic" stretch like Kovy's.

Having said that, it looks like goalies are catching onto his 5-hole laser...Elliot was clearly prepared for it, and Hiller seemed to know it was coming too, but was a split second too late in closing the gap.

I would stay with Zach because of his history, because he's been terrific overall, in spite of this recent lull. And the Devils are 10-3 this year in shootouts, so it's not like they're suffering in the slightest as a result.

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Having said that, it looks like goalies are catching onto his 5-hole laser...Elliot was clearly prepared for it, and Hiller seemed to know it was coming too, but was a split second too late in closing the gap.

I would stay with Zach because of his history, because he's been terrific overall, in spite of this recent lull. And the Devils are 10-3 this year in shootouts, so it's not like they're suffering in the slightest as a result.

Unfortunately I worry it may be coming to an end soon. Like you said, they're catching on to Kovy... and Parise's dekes don't catch goalies ridiculously out of position anymore... win enough shootouts, goalies pay attention. After a teams big 2 or 3, it gets a bit random which is why having Brodeur's 'encyclopedia' on shooters is key. He doesn't need to study the top 3, he knows a lot more... unless you're a rookie, then you'll get your first career goal :)

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