Final Thoughts

As mentioned at the beginning of this article, anticipating power play points out West is no easy task. The Anaheim Ducks and Los Angeles Kings are current samples of teams who were great last year despite lackluster power plays. In 2013-14 the Kings were 25^th overall and the Ducks were 27^th overall when looking at power play goals per 60 minutes. An interesting twist here is that during the lockout shortened 2012-13 campaign, the Ducks and Kings were actually quite good. Anahiem was third overall (8.02 PPG/60 minutes) and Los Angeles was sixth overall (7.39 PPG/60 minutes) as both teams experienced tremendous power play success.

As for total power play goals, in 2013-14 the Kings finished 22^nd and the Ducks finished 24^th. In 2012-13 the Kings finished 7^th and the Ducks finished 11^th as both teams racked up the goals after the lockout. Again, anticipating power play success is tough, as both teams could easily reverse the trend again and return to the top 10 in 2014-15, showing us how power play trends are difficult to analyze.

Finally, the Phoenix (now Arizona) Coyotes are a true example of how the power play pendulum can swing in the Western Conference. In 2012-13 the Coyotes were dead last in the league with just 4.32 power-play goals per 60 minutes and were second worst in the West after the lockout, scoring just 19 power play goals. Fast forward to 2013-14 where the Coyotes led the West in both of these categories.

 Bonus Facts – Both Conferences

Nashville was the only team in the league not to allow a short-handed goal in 2013-14, another example of Weber's and Josi's dominance.

Los Angeles had the second most TOI in the league in 2013-14. Meanwhile, Florida had the third most PP TOI, so perhaps there is some hope the Kings and Panthers can produce after all. Both teams are clearly getting opportunities and just need to cash in. With an improved roster perhaps some Panthers make for some nice under the radar PP contributors this year. Going back to 2012-13, the Panthers finished 8^th overall with 6.9 PPG per 60 minutes.

Montreal had the fourth most PP TOI last year but finished in the bottom half of the league in both total PP goals and PPG per 60 minutes.

Philadelphia finished in the top five in all three categories in 2013-14. They were fifth in PP TOI; third in PP goals; and fifth in PPG per 60 minutes. Look to the Flyers if you need some PPP in 2014-15.

Four teams missed the playoffs despite being in the top 10 in power-play goals scored – Washington, Philadelphia, Toronto and Ottawa. Those same four teams also finished in the top 10 in PPG per 60 minutes along with Nashville, another team that missed the playoffs despite a solid power play. One that is likely to improve with Ribiero and Neal, cue that 60 point season for Shea Weber?

Under Ralph Krueger, the Edmonton Oilers score 7 PPG per 60 minutes in 2012-13. Last year this number dropped to 5.73 goals per 60 minutes.

Washington has been the most dominant power play team over the past two years. As mentioned above, the Capitals led the league in total power play goals last year and most PPG per 60 minutes. In 2012-13 they also led in total goals with the man advantage and produced 10.04 power play goals per 60 minutes. A Trotz coached team with an already dominant power play could mean the Caps are for real. Perhaps Niskanen won't regress despite the change of scenery and Green could be good for 50 points if healthy.

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In closing, I want to give a shout out to forum member glorybe23 for what amounted to be two very interesting and entertaining threads this summer. If you have yet to come across his great work I would suggest checking these threads out. This guy has a real talent for creating team logos, and a number of Dobberhockey members were lucky enough to benefit from his genius and generosity.  Thanks again glorybe23 and well done!

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