Forensics: Gustav Nyquist

Anthony Lancione

2014-09-27

GustavNyquist

What to expect from sophomore Gustav Nyquist.

The latest in a long line of Swedish stars to blossom in the Detroit Red Wings' system, Gustav Nyquist, burst onto the scene which much aplomb in 2013-14. He not so shockingly didn't break camp last campaign, nestled in Grand Rapids for a third go-around. This, despite participating in the Red Wings' full two round playoff run the previous spring; then joining the Griffins to solidify their Calder Cup Triumph, performing admirably in both postseason runs. His 60 points in 58 games in Grand Rapids was not enough to keep him away from Detroit. However, injuries crippled the Red Wings for what seems like an annual ritual the past half dozen seasons, paving way for his return to the big club.

Nyquist more than made a name for himself after his November 2013 call-up with a pair of markers right off the bat in his first appearance of the season. He followed that up with several hot streaks (eight goals in seven games in late January, nine in six in March, etc). Those surges kept coming at the right time to boot, after the very busy Joe Louis Nursery Ward made the Wings' epic 22 year playoff streak look in serious doubt for some time. However, Nyquist proved to be the Red Wings' most valuable player last spring. He scored 14 goals after the Olympic break to steer them into the playoffs. He was the main catalyst, all the more impressively since the big two horses, Captain Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk were among those out long term.

"Goose", as Gustav is affectionately called in the Detroit locker room, accumulated his 28 goals (and 20 helpers) in 57 games (a 40-goal pace!). All the more intriguing is that he did it with inconsistent running mates. He had to contend with a laundry list of line mates as Coach Babkcock constantly jumbled his lineup, whether in response to slumps or the bevy of injuries.

Our wonderful Frozen Pools Most Frequent Line Combo Generator takes a look at Nyquist's most common centremen & left wingers played with.

Frequency	Strength	Line Combination
17.94%	EV	8 ABDELKADER,JUSTIN – 14 NYQUIST,GUSTAV – 40 ZETTERBERG,HENRIK
11.99%	EV	93 FRANZEN,JOHAN – 17 LEGWAND,DAVID – 14 NYQUIST,GUSTAV
9.29%	EV	14 NYQUIST,GUSTAV – 15 SHEAHAN,RILEY – 21 TATAR,TOMAS
7.59%	EV	93 FRANZEN,JOHAN – 14 NYQUIST,GUSTAV – 40 ZETTERBERG,HENRIK
3.78%	EV	44 BERTUZZI,TODD – 93 FRANZEN,JOHAN – 14 NYQUIST,GUSTAV
3.47%	EV	11 ALFREDSSON,DANIEL – 14 NYQUIST,GUSTAV – 40 ZETTERBERG,HENRIK
2.94%	EV	18 ANDERSSON,JOAKIM – 14 NYQUIST,GUSTAV – 21 TATAR,TOMAS

Furthermore, Frozen Pools allows you to breakdown not only who your favourite skater most frequently lines up with, but also who he was most effective and productive alongside!

Total Points for Gustav Nyquist : 47

Str	On Ice Line Combination	Points	%Total Points
EV	ABDELKADER,JUSTIN – NYQUIST,GUSTAV – ZETTERBERG,HENRIK	10	21.28%
EV 📢 advertisement:	NYQUIST,GUSTAV – SHEAHAN,RILEY – TATAR,TOMAS	7	14.89%
EV	FRANZEN,JOHAN – NYQUIST,GUSTAV – ZETTERBERG,HENRIK	5	10.64%
EV	FRANZEN,JOHAN – LEGWAND,DAVID – NYQUIST,GUSTAV	5	10.64%
PP	ALFREDSSON,DANIEL – BERTUZZI,TODD – FRANZEN,JOHAN – NYQUIST,GUSTAV	3	6.38%
EV	DATSYUK,PAVEL – FRANZEN,JOHAN – NYQUIST,GUSTAV	2	4.26%
PP	ALFREDSSON,DANIEL – ANDERSSON,JOAKIM – FRANZEN,JOHAN – NYQUIST,GUSTAV	1	2.13%
EV	FRANZEN,JOHAN – NYQUIST,GUSTAV – TATAR,TOMAS	1	2.13%

This is definitely a go-to tool for yours truly in the midst of fantasy season. Especially when big names go down and you'd like to know who to target as a replacement off your league's waiver wire or who to send trade offers for.

Despite Nyquist's breakout season, I would tend to caution regarding holding expectations of matching that 40-goal pace for an entire season this year, or at all for that matter. He definitely set the bar pretty high, though it would still be plausible to expect him to come in near that rate of play again, especially with Datsyuk missing from the power play in October. However, 57 games is a far cry from 82. Ironically, his first three full professional seasons have resulted in Games Played totals of 56, 57 and 58. So, as he is finally ready to break camp with the big club for the first time in his career, Nyquist will surely be tested this season on his durability and capability of performing for the full grind that is an NHL season.

UPCOMING GAMES

Dec 27 - 19:12	DET	vs	TOR
Dec 27 - 19:12	BUF	vs	CHI
Dec 27 - 19:12	CBJ	vs	BOS
Dec 27 - 19:12	N.J	vs	CAR
Dec 27 - 20:12	DAL	vs	MIN
Dec 27 - 20:12	STL	vs	NSH
Dec 27 - 21:12	UTA	vs	COL
Dec 27 - 22:12	S.J	vs	VGK