Written by Todd Cordell (@ToddCordell)
On Jiri Hudler …
After a couple months of searching Jiri Hudler finally found a new home.
That home, of course, is the Dallas Stars as the veteran forward put pen to paper on a one-year contract worth $2 million.
While Hudler’s best days are undoubtedly behind him – there’s no way he’s touching his 2014-15 production again. Hudler is still a very effective player and should be an excellent addition to the Stars lineup.
Over the last two seasons Hudler has tallied 77 points at 5 v 5. That’s ties him with the likes of Anze Kopitar, Johnny Gaudreau and Mark Stone for 15th in the NHL over that span. What’s more impressive is when you account for ice time and look at his numbers on a per-60 basis, he looks even better. During the same two-year frame Hudler has averaged 2.34 points per 60 minutes at 5 v 5. Only eight players averaged more and two of them (Jamie Benn – 2nd, Tyler Seguin – 8th) are now teammates.
Moving forward it’s pretty unlikely Hudler continues to produce as he has over the last two years. I don’t think anyone expects him to be a top-20 scorer at 5 v 5, but it’s crystal clear he still has some gas left in the tank and can be a consistent offensive contributor.
The Stars didn’t necessarily need any more offensive firepower – they score enough as is – but they had an opportunity to add a top-6 forward without committing much in terms of money or term and they took it.
On Brandon Pirri …
The New York Rangers have brought yet another forward into the fold as they’ve signed Brandon Pirri to a one-year deal worth $1.1 million.
While the Rangers didn’t necessarily need anymore help up front – they already had an abundance of quality forwards – I think they were smart to sign Pirri.
Pirri has played in 166 NHL regular season games over the last few seasons and has shown, if not anything else, he can be a very good goal scorer. He has scored 49 times in his young career, which equates to a hair over 24 goals per 82 games.
His rate stats – in terms of scoring, anyway – have been very impressive as well. Over the last two seasons he has averaged .94 goals per 60 minutes of ice at 5 v 5. That ties him for 30th in the NHL with Zach Parise, Tomas Tatar, Brendan Gallagher and Brock Nelson. It also ranks him just ahead of Brad Marchand, Jordan Eberle, Sean Monahan, Sidney Crosby, Phil Kessel and Logan Couture, among many others. That’s impressive company to be keeping.
In today’s NHL it is harder than ever to fill the net, so getting someone who can do that – especially at a young age (25) – for the price of an average 4th liner seems like a no-brainer. If Pirri pots 10 goals he’ll be well worth the money and there’s nothing to suggest he won’t easily surpass that total.
On Hampus Lindholm …
With the World Cup of Hockey just around the corner. Players who feel unfit to play are having to back out of the tournament.
One of the latest to do so was Swedish defenseman Niklas Kronwall. While management probably feels this is a big loss – Kronwall has long been a mainstay on Sweden’s back end – the reality is that they are much better off with Hampus Lindholm, Kronwall’s replacement, on the roster. It’s not even close, really.
As you can see Lindholm is the more effective player by each measurement listed. In terms of goals, assist and point production Lindholm has been more efficient at 5 v 5. The difference is even larger in terms of possession as Lindholm has been a fantastic play driver despite logging big minutes against top competition. Kronwall, on the other hand, has struggled mightily in that regard.
Kronwall was once a very good player, but that no longer remains the case. Sweden’s defense is certainly a lot better with Lindholm taking his spot.