We are back for Week 2 of our playoff review series. In week one we took a look at our West Coast and Canadian teams who were eliminated in the first round, and our goal for this week is to do the same out east. We won’t focus on matchup results so much as on what various players accomplished during those matchups.

Just as a reminder from last week: Given that many of the playoff sample sizes are so small, it is hard to draw too large a conclusion from most of them. We will be touching on point production, but our main focus will be usage and deployment. We want to answer the question – were players used in a different way during the playoffs that can give us any hints as to how they might be used next season?

To answer this question, we are going to turn to the Time on Ice Reports from the report page. By running and then exporting the same report for both the regular season and the playoffs to date we can get the same data from those two periods. We then combine sources and filter by the team of focus to get an idea of who on each team benefited and who lost out.

As a secondary reminder, we definitely need to take all of this with a grain of salt. We are talking about small sample sizes here for teams that did not perform exceptionally well in the playoffs. These teams also have the off season, the expansion draft, and the actual draft to tinker with their lineups. This analysis is helpful though in giving a bit of insight into a coach's strategy and view of the role of various players. 

Pittsburgh

Name	Pos	Team	GP	Playoff %TOI	Playoff TOI	Season % TOI	Season TOI	% Δ
CODY CECI	D	PIT	6	33.9	22:25	30.5	18:31	3.4
KRIS LETANG	D	PIT	6	43.3	28:42	40.6	24:39	2.7
BRIAN DUMOULIN	D	PIT	6	39.2	25:57	36.9	22:22	2.3
MIKE MATHESON	D	PIT	6	32.7	21:39	30.8	18:38	1.9
JEFF CARTER	C	PIT	6	28	18:31	27.3	16:34	0.7

There isn't a lot to see here. The biggest beneficiary in time on ice was Cody Ceci, but that isn't all that helpful. He wasn't used in much of an offensive capacity, and didn't do much with his increase. Were he to keep up the 22-plus minutes in another season, we might see more peripherals, but it really doesn't do much for us. The biggest beneficiary of power-play time was Evgeni Malkin, but again not that helpful as Malkin is definitely a known quantity.

Name	Pos	Team	GP	Playoff %TOI	Playoff TOI	Season % TOI	Season TOI	% Δ
JOHN MARINO	D	PIT	6	26.8	17:45	34.1	20:44	-7.3
MARCUS PETTERSSON	D	PIT	6	20.1	13:19	27.3	16:29	-7.2
EVAN RODRIGUES	C	PIT	2	16.7	11:24	23.3	14:06	-6.6
JAKE GUENTZEL	L	PIT	6	29.4	19:27	33.4	20:16	-4
BRANDON TANEV	L	PIT	6	20	13:15	23.7	14:26	-3.7

On the flip side, John Marino losing out of time is relevant but not good news. He is only in his second full season and has thus far lacked the offensive flair that was hoped for. He has gotten a couple of shots on the power play with injuries and cold streaks, but he again lost time there during the playoffs. None of that means he can't necessarily have a better season next time around, particularly if the Penguins decide to part ways with Kris Letang and Co. but Marino pretty clearly isn't ready for prime time yet according to his coaches.

Evan Rodrigues had a rough series as well. He dropped down below 11.5 minutes a night, and lost a huge chunk of his power-play role, dropping 26 percent. He has never been a big factor, but given his potential deployment next to superstars he was always somewhat interesting. Add this to the pile of mounting information that suggests he isn't primed to break out any time soon.

Washington

Name	Pos	Team	GP	Playoff %TOI	Playoff TOI	Season % TOI	Season TOI	% Δ
EVGENY KUZNETSOV	C	WSH	3	31.1	21:04	27.3	16:34	3.8
DMITRY ORLOV	D	WSH	5	35.7	23:27	32.8	19:49	2.9
JUSTIN SCHULTZ	D	WSH	5	34.1	22:24	31.3	19:01	2.8
TOM WILSON	R	WSH	5	29.1	19:07	27.3	16:32	1.8
ALEX OVECHKIN	L	WSH	5	33.4	21:57	32.3	19:30	1.1

Nothing huge over in Washington either. We are seeing some knowns and some D getting a bit of a bump. It is a bit interesting that John Carlson wasn't one of the D, and that it was Evgeny Kuznetsov and Tom Wilson getting the increases in time, rather than say Nicklas Backstrom and TJ Oshie. Kuznetsov's total was buoyed by his increase in power-play time, where he led the team. He was up around six minutes a night which is an amazing opportunity, but doesn't really look like the the unit actually changed that much. The one player who did see a bit more time with the top unit is Lars Eller, so that is definitely worth watching if he gets an opportunity next season with Jakub Vrana off in Detroit.

Name	Pos	Team	GP	Playoff %TOI	Playoff TOI	Season % TOI	Season TOI	% Δ
ZDENO CHARA	D	WSH	5	24.7	16:16	30.2	18:19	-5.5
DANIEL CARR	L	WSH	1	12.3	10:33	17	10:14	-4.7
ANTHONY MANTHA	R	WSH	5	26.8	17:36	30	18:07	-3.2
NICK JENSEN	D	WSH	5	26.1	17:11	28.6	17:18	-2.5
DANIEL SPRONG	R	WSH	3	16.8	10:23	19.3	11:40	-2.5

It isn't really surprising to see Zdeno Chara having lost out on time during the playoffs. Sure, he is a legend, but he is 44 and his best days are clearly behind him. The name that stuck out here was Anthony Mantha. He had a great start after his trade with six points in his first six game, but followed that up with only two over the final eight. In the playoffs he also put up two points. His deployment seemed to stay reasonable, playing with Alex Ovechkin and Backstrom at even strength and on the power-play, so we aren't in panic mode here. Mantha lost time in both places, though, and putting up only two points doesn't give us a lot of confidence.

Nashville

Name	Pos	Team	GP	Playoff %TOI	Playoff TOI	Season % TOI	Season TOI	% Δ
ALEXANDRE CARRIER	D	NSH	6	35	25:16	32.9	20:03	2.1
ERIK HAULA	L	NSH	6	28.1	20:20	26.4	16:00	1.7
YAKOV TRENIN	C	NSH	6	20.4	14:46	18.9	11:34	1.5
COLTON SISSONS	C	NSH	6	25	18:07	23.6	14:21	1.4
MIKAEL GRANLUND	C	NSH	6	32.7	23:39	32	19:28	0.7

Most of the changes in Nashville seem to be around matchups needed and not of a fancy new role or anything – with the exception of Alexandre Carrier. Through most of his 19-game season he was seeing about 20 minutes a night with essentially no power-play time. Suddenly the playoffs roll around and he is getting almost two and a half minutes a night on the top power-play as the second D option alongside Roman Josi. He didn't connect on the power-play unfortunately, but this opportunity is definitely one of the more intriguing changes on the list.

Name	Pos	Team	GP	Playoff %TOI	Playoff TOI	Season % TOI	Season TOI	% Δ
ERIK GUDBRANSON	D	NSH	2	21.6	12:59	29.5	17:55	-7.9
BRAD RICHARDSON	R	NSH	2	15.6	9:29	20	12:16	-4.4
RYAN ELLIS	D	NSH	6	35.2	25:26	39.1	23:46	-3.9
ROMAN JOSI	D	NSH	6	37.3	26:57	40.1	24:21	-2.8
MATT DUCHENE	C	NSH	6	23.4	16:56	26.1	15:50	-2.7

Erik Gudbranson saw a sizable drop in icetime, though given it was only a two-game sample, so we aren't going to read too much into it. Ryan Ellis is a bit of a question mark though. He lost about 4 percent of the team's ice time, and unfortunately for him a huge chunk of it was on the power-play. He, Ryan Johansen, and Matt Duchene all fell significantly, dropping at least 20 percent of the team's power-play time. To make matters slightly confusing they all appear to have been playing on different units. That is concerning for all three of them, and at least for Johansen and Duchene, another piece in a trend that has them pretty consistently losing value over time.

Florida

Name	Pos	Team	GP	Playoff %TOI	Playoff TOI	Season % TOI	Season TOI	% Δ
SAM BENNETT	C	FLA	5	34.3	20:53	24	14:25	10.3
OWEN TIPPETT	R	FLA	6	22.5	13:36	19	11:29	3.5
CARTER VERHAEGHE	C	FLA	6	31.9	19:17	29.1	17:44	2.8
GUSTAV FORSLING	D	FLA	6	35.5	21:31	33	19:57	2.5
JONATHAN HUBERDEAU	L	FLA	6	32.7	19:49	30.4	18:25	2.3

Finally something actually exciting to talk about here. This one is really a win/win situation for Sam Bennett and Owen Tippett. It wasn't specific to the playoffs exactly, but from when Bennett joined the Panthers at the trade deadline. Bennett and Tippett joined Jonathan Huberdeau to make a dramatically successful second line. We all saw Bennett explode, but Tippett's even-strength deployment improved right alongside Bennett's. The one downside for Tippett through the end of the regular season and playoffs is that he wasn't getting the top unit power-play time that Bennett was. Bennett is clearly the hot name at the moment, but don't forget about Tippett. This is a great sign for him and could start paying dividends next season if he can keep that spot in the lineup.

Name	Pos	Team	GP	Playoff %TOI	Playoff TOI	Season % TOI	Season TOI	% Δ
KEITH YANDLE	D	FLA	3	21.8	12:59	28.4	17:15	-6.6
NOEL ACCIARI	C	FLA	6	19	11:31	25.3	15:22	-6.3
ANTHONY DUCLAIR	L	FLA	6	20.2	12:15	25.8	15:41	-5.6
BRANDON MONTOUR	D	FLA	6	28.2	17:06	33.8	20:29	-5.6
FRANK VATRANO	C	FLA	6	19.5	11:50	24	14:32	-4.5

There are some pretty clear cause and effects here. Keith Yandle isn't pulling his weight anymore and couldn't even keep the top power-play spot with Aaron Ekblad injured. The Panthers went with five forwards instead. Playing only 13 minutes a night as a defenseman in the playoffs is beyond worrying. He already lost time during the regular season, had disputes with the team, and now apparently is not even a power-play specialist. No good news here for Yandle.

If Bennett and Tippett were rising stars (plus Mason Marchment – not mentioned above, but got time with Alex Barkov on the top line) over the end of the season and playoffs it pretty clearly came at the expense of Anthony Duclair, Noel Acciari, and Frank Vatrano. All three were pieces that saw inconsistent usage in the top six through the regular season, but clearly lost out in the playoffs. Duclair in particular had excellent deployment for chunks of the season, but seems to have been pushed out, fairly convincingly this time. Big questions surround deployment now for all three of them.

That's all for now. Stay safe out there.

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