Forensics: Nathan MacKinnon
Anthony Lancione
2014-12-12
What to make of Nathan MacKinnon’s sophomore slump.
Even superstars aren't precluded from the much maligned sophomore slump. The 2013 NHL Entry Draft's crown jewel, Nathan Mackinnon is right in the midst of a major lull having not scored a goal in exactly a month – with his last marker coming on November 13th in Manhattan. The last time he scored a goal on home ice? November 2nd – a whole 16 games total have been logged by him since then. In fact, he's now scoreless in his past five contests, with a minus-7 rating in that span.
15.87%
EV
MACKINNON,NATHAN – MCGINN,JAMIE – PARENTEAU,PIERRE
5
7.94%
EV
LANDESKOG,GABRIEL – MACKINNON,NATHAN – PARENTEAU,PIERRE
4
6.35%
Just look at his most common linemates this year. You've got a pair of 37-year-olds in Jarome Iginla and Daniel Briere eating up a lion's share of minutes on Mackinnon's line this season. It's pretty apparent the two aging veterans simply cannot keep up.
2014-15 Frozen Pools – Most Frequent Linemate Generator – Nate Mackinnon
|
Frequency |
Strength |
Line Combination |
|
34.58% |
EV |
12 IGINLA,JAROME – 92 LANDESKOG,GABRIEL – 29 MACKINNON,NATHAN |
|
12.86% |
EV |
92 LANDESKOG,GABRIEL – 29 MACKINNON,NATHAN – 90 O’REILLY,RYAN |
|
7.27% |
EV |
12 IGINLA,JAROME – 29 MACKINNON,NATHAN – 11 MCGINN,JAMIE |
|
7.13% |
EV |
48 BRIERE,DANIEL – 29 MACKINNON,NATHAN – 40 TANGUAY,ALEX |
|
3.49% |
EV |
48 BRIERE,DANIEL – 29 MACKINNON,NATHAN – 11 MCGINN,JAMIE |
After beating the improbable odds to firestorm their way to a Western Conference regular season championship, Colorado has truly felt the full force of the Regression Monster this season, reverting much closer to the mean.
Their poor performance this season is making the Avalanche seem to some as the epitome of a fluke last year. However, the same cannot be said about Nathan big picture. He's just going to have to work through these issues. However, a line juggling should definitely be in the cards for Coach Patrick Roy soon, so as to seek a better way to best utilize his most skilled player.
I still see Mackinnon breaking out of this funk, though matching last year's totals is now become a high end goal for the year, with the more likely scenario being Mackinnon just falls short, but approaches 60 points.
(Give Anthony Lancione a follow on Twitter @Anthisdaman)
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UPCOMING GAMES
Starting Goalies
Top Skater Views
MTL
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TOR
COLTop Goalie Profile Views
CAR
VAN
VGK
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LINE COMBOS
| Frequency |
 NSH Players
| |
|---|---|---|
| 20.9 | RYAN O'REILLY GUSTAV NYQUIST FILIP FORSBERG | |
| 14.2 | TOMMY NOVAK LUKE EVANGELISTA ANTHONY BEAUVILLIER | |
| 13.9 | JASON ZUCKER COLTON SISSONS MARK JANKOWSKI | |
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