SB Nation - Sean O`Donnell

2008-09's Rod Langway Award

James Mirtle — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 04:46:37 -0000

Following up on the post listing the top defensive forwards this season, here's my statistically based look at the top defensive defencemen in the NHL.

As always, this chart is based on (a) playing a significant amount of time shorthanded, (b) facing difficult even strength competition as determined by Behind The Net, and (c) keeping goals against down at even strength and while killing penalties when on the ice. Players also had to have played a minimum of 55 games this season.

	NAME	TM	GP	QCMP	EVGA	SHGA
1	NICK SCHULTZ	MIN	79	0.06	2.06	3.31
2	SEAN O'DONNELL	L.A	82	0.05	1.82	5.28
3	ROB SCUDERI	PIT	81	0.05	1.98	5.12
4	KIM JOHNSSON	MIN	81	0.04	2.13	3.29
5	WILLIE MITCHELL	VAN	82	0.06	1.93	6.41
6	JAN HEJDA	CBJ	82	0.08	2.28	5.77
7	ZDENO CHARA	BOS	80	0.06	2.23	5.84
8	ANTON VOLCHENKOV	OTT	68	0.08	2.29	5.88
9	PAUL MARTIN	N.J	73	0.04	1.87	6.09
10	AARON WARD	BOS	65	0.04	1.98	5.89
11	BRENT SEABROOK	CHI	82	0.09	2.11	6.68
12	DUNCAN KEITH	CHI	77	0.08	2.18	6.44
13	M-E VLASIC	S.J	82	0.02	1.99	5.18
14	DAN GIRARDI	NYR	81	0.03	2.38	2.28
15	NICKLAS LIDSTROM	DET	78	0.09	2.14	6.92
16	KIMMO TIMONEN	PHI	76	0.06	2.42	5.86
17	ROB BLAKE	S.J	73	0.00	1.83	4.86
18	BRENT BURNS	MIN	60	0.02	2.35	3.82
19	MARC STAAL	NYR	81	0.06	2.71	4.55
20	FEDOR TYUTIN	CBJ	82	0.02	2.28	5.14
21	MIKE GREEN	WSH	67	0.00	2.18	2.60
22	HAL GILL	PIT	62	0.03	2.23	6.19
23	MATT GREENE	L.A	82	0.00	2.02	5.01
24	CHRIS PHILLIPS	OTT	82	0.07	2.70	5.40
25	CRAIG RIVET	BUF	64	0.04	2.43	5.84
26	DENNIS WIDEMAN	BOS	79	0.02	2.05	6.36
27	TONI LYDMAN	BUF	80	0.05	2.48	5.96
28	SAMI SALO	VAN	60	0.06	2.09	7.95
29	KEVIN BIEKSA	VAN	72	0.03	2.60	4.28
30	GREG ZANON	NSH	82	0.02	2.02	6.57

Last year's co-winners of this fictional award were Adam Foote and Nick Lidstrom, and this time around I think I'd go with either Chara, Mitchell or Hejda. Martin, Keith and Vlasic have also quietly had excellent seasons for great teams.

Kings Gameday: End of the Year Awards

RudyKelly — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 23:43:06 -0000

LA Kings vs. Edmonton Oilers

6:00 PST, NOT FOX SPORTS YOU BASTARDS

Check out everyone's selections over at From the Rink

Hart- Drew Doughty

This is a weird award. It's not that Doughty necessarily earned it (although he has had a great season), it's that nobody else on the team deserved it. Kopitar sucked the first half of the year, Brown sucked the 2nd half, Frolov got benched a bunch, O'Donnell maybe deserved it but that would have been humiliating to admit... I mean, why not the 19 year-old that played 23+ minutes a game at defense?

I've always thought that it was the curse of the athlete theat you're gifted with physical gifts at an age when you don't quite grasp the nuances of the game, and when you're finally old enough to get those nuances you're too old to take advantage of them. Doughty's different. Doughty's a freak, a 19 year-old that sees the game at a level I'm not sure many can match. I think he could sit at a table with Joe Thornton, Pavel Datsyuk, Sidney Crosby and Nick Lidstrom and talk intelligently about the game with all of them. (Well, not Datsyuk because nobody understands that big-headed freak, but everyone else.) He doesn't have the physical ability yet, and he may never get there, but he has the mind. And I think that's the most important part.

Norris- Drew Doughty

I picked Doughty because he's the lead defenseman and played in all situations, but you could probably make a case for Sean O'Donnell, Kyle Quincey or Matt Greene. The Kings went from 29th in the league in defense to 12th, and I think a big part of that was the improved efforts of all of our defenseman, from Doughty to Drewiskie. Good work, guys.

Vezina- Jonathan Quick

Well, duh. Pekka Rinne and Steve Mason have both had great seasons, but Jonathan Quick's name should be mentioned right alongside both of them.

Calder- Wayne Simmonds

I know, it should be Drew Doughty, but hasn't he won enough? If the coke-addled drunk from Bakersfield has already won Best Performer and Best Guy/Girl/Girl/Guy/Girl Scene, isn't it OK to take the award for Best ATM Scene and give it to the recovering crackhead from Des Moines? I think Wayne Simmonds should be celebrated for his ability to go A-to-M jump directly into the NHL at 19/20 and for not slowing down at all this season. Hopefully he gains a little weight this off-season and comes back ready to roll.

Selke- Michal Handzus

According to Mirtle this should probably be Jarret Stoll because of his ability on the penalty kill, but when you consider that it's usually Stoll in the box because he hooks and holds too damn much I think you have to give it to Handzus. Is Handzus the best defensive specialist in the Pacific now? I mean, he always was because Pahlsson's a little overrated bitch, but will Earl finally admit it?*

*That was mean, sorry.

Adams- Mark Hardy

Murray should be congratulated for getting the Kings committed to defense, but the transformation of the Kings' penalty kill has been a revelation this season. The additions of Stoll, Greene and O'Donnell definitely helped, but I think Hardy's decision to attack a lot more on the penalty kill really helped our young players grow to love playing a man down. Jamie Kompon kind of sucks.

Kyle Quincey Award (Best acquisition)- Kyle Quincey

Kyle Quincey is awesome. It's doubly-delicious for me, because Detroit's signing of Brad Stuart not only prevented him from coming back to LA but also forced Detroit to put Quincey on waivers. He just had back surgery but should be ready to go next fall.

Anson Carter Award (Worst Acquisition)- Brad Richardson

	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	GTG	SOG	PCT
2008 - Brad Richardson	30	0	5	5	-6	11	0	0	0	0	37	0.0

That was worth another Moller or Simmonds.

Gary Shuchuk Award (Unsung Hero)- Sean O'Donnell

Everyone just kind of assumes that O'Donnell's only contribution was moral and philosophical, but the guy played some damned good hockey this year. According to Behind the Net, O'Donnell played the toughest minutes of any Kings 5-on-5 and did better than most other defenseman. Add in the contributions he made off the ice, and you're looking at a player that any team would take. Not bad, Red.

Len Barrie Award (Most Hated Player)- Denis Gauthier

I gotta be honest, I don't see one positive contribution made by Gauthier all year. I guess he's good on the penalty kill (when he's not the one in the box for elbowing or charging or whatever the fuck) and I don't see why he's playing over someone like Peter Harrold or Tom Preissing or my sister. Most Len Barrie Award winners usually leave the team the following year, so hopefully Gauthier follows Brian Willsie off into the sunset... where he shot into the Sun.

Kelly Hrudey Award (Favorite Player)- Kelly Hrudey

I'm not prepared to pick a favorite player from this crop. Frolov maybe, but his contract status is too uncertain and I'm not prepared to put my heart out there after getting burned by Craig Conroy and Lubo. Maybe Simmonds, although he's a little to replaceable at this point. Maybe next year I'll know.

Prediction: Not a prediction, but how do you think Patrick O'Sullivan and Lubo reacted when they saw one another again?

P'O (mouth clenched): Hey, uh, Lubo, how you doing?

Lubo: Ahh... I GOOD!

P'O: Uh, me too. Uh, what's up?

Lubo: Ahh... I GOOD!

P'O: God this sucks.

The Rod Langway Award leaders

James Mirtle — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 05:55:06 -0000

It's been nearly two months since I took at look at the top defensive defencemen, so it's high time for another run through. Big assist to Behind The Net for the data.

Here's what we've got as the season winds down:

	NAME	TM	GP	QCMP	EVGA	SHGA
1	BRENT SEABROOK	CHI	64	0.09	1.98	5.07
2	PAUL MARTIN	N.J	57	0.07	1.68	5.12
3	DUNCAN KEITH	CHI	60	0.08	2.00	5.35
4	NICK SCHULTZ	MIN	65	0.05	1.98	3.74
5	ROB SCUDERI	PIT	66	0.08	2.10	5.78
6	JAN HEJDA	CBJ	66	0.09	2.15	5.83
7	SEAN O'DONNELL	L.A	66	0.04	1.89	5.50
8	ZDENO CHARA	BOS	67	0.08	2.04	6.43
9	M-E VLASIC	S.J	65	0.03	1.97	5.17
10	MIKE GREEN	WSH	55	0.01	1.82	2.69
11	KIM JOHNSSON	MIN	64	0.03	2.24	3.22
12	NICK LIDSTROM	DET	64	0.11	2.15	6.65
13	ROB BLAKE	S.J	62	0.02	1.69	4.72
14	ANTON VOLCHENKOV	OTT	51	0.07	2.20	6.13
15	JOHN ODUYA	N.J	66	0.04	2.22	5.35
16	BRUNO GERVAIS	NYI	52	0.05	2.51	4.37
17	DENNIS WIDEMAN	BOS	66	0.03	1.74	6.13
18	WILLIE MITCHELL	VAN	65	0.06	1.79	7.25
19	ROBYN REGEHR	CGY	64	0.03	2.33	4.67
20	KEVIN BIEKSA	VAN	56	0.04	2.44	4.65
21	MIKE COMMODORE	CBJ	65	0.09	2.38	6.58
22	TONI LYDMAN	BUF	63	0.06	2.58	4.95
23	CHRIS PHILLIPS	OTT	64	0.07	2.66	5.36
24	KIMMO TIMONEN	PHI	58	0.07	2.43	6.16
25	GREG ZANON	NSH	66	0.03	2.17	5.79
26	MARC STAAL	NYR	64	0.06	2.71	4.58
27	JAY BOUWMEESTER	FLA	65	0.10	2.26	7.80
28	KARLIS SKRASTINS	FLA	63	0.08	2.14	8.53
29	ANDREW ALBERTS	PHI	60	-0.07	2.08	4.27
30	COLIN WHITE	N.J	60	0.04	2.41	6.04

Seabrook, Martin and Keith are all incredibly close by these numbers, so it's anyone's guess who'll win my fictitious trophy this time around.

It's tougher to get on this list if you play for a team that struggles with its goals against, but a few guys have managed. Gervais plays for the god awful Islanders and against tough opposition, while Detroit, Pittsburgh and Calgary are all 20th or worse in goals against and have Lidstrom, (Reliable) Rob Scuderi and Regehr represented here.

As per usual, all of the players listed here have to play a regular role on the penalty kill, have to have played at least 45 games and about 15 minutes a game at even strength.

Players who didn't do so well in this metric (among those who qualified) include Lilja, Staios, Gauthier, Brad Stuart, Enstrom, Havelid, Phaneuf, Jason Smith and Finger.

Oh, and from the looks of just the numbers, Green should win the Norris. He's on pace for a whale of a season.

Kings Gameday: Point/Counterpoint on Sully/Williams

RudyKelly — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 23:12:10 -0000

LA Kings vs. Dallas Stars

7:30 PST, Fox Sports West

Point: Patrick O'Sullivan had regressed this season. I don't think anyone will argue that point. Despite the fact that O'Sullivan had played mostly with Anze Kopitar and Jarret Stoll this season, he still couldn't outscore himself from last year when he played with Michal Handzus. I don't know what is was, maybe he didn't like playing for Terry Murray as much as he liked playing under Marc Crawford, maybe the time off at the beginning of the season was bad for him, or maybe he just got unlucky. He wasn't as dynamic offensively, wasn't as efficient defensively, and looked somewhat disinterested all year. Whatever the reason, he was not the player we expected him to be. Oddly enough, I think the player we were all expecting Patrick O'Sullivan to turn into was Justin Williams from 2 years ago.

Two years ago, Justin Williams was one of the better players on the planet. He helped lead the Carolina Hurricanes to the Stanley Cup on the strength of his 76 points (33 goals) in the regular season and 18 points in the playoffs. The season after that he increased his goal total but saw a slight dip in his overall point total. The season after that, he tore his ACL and missed most of the season. This season, he battled back from an Achilles tendon injury only to immediately break his hand. When healthy, Justin Williams gives us another Alex Frolov with a slightly different skill set. That "when healthy," though, is a caveat big enough to to drive through.

Ultimately, I'm a little disappointed by the trade. It's not that I loved Patrick O'Sullivan (I liked him, but I wasn't in like with him) or that I think Justin Williams is a terrible player, it's just that I don't see why the Kings would throw in a 2nd for an oft-injured player; of course, when you look at Dean Lombardi's love of injured players* it becomes rather obvious. I think Lombardi believes there is a market inefficiency in hockey and that market is injured players. Williams did eff his Achilles Tendon but his hand injury probably gave him a little time to heal that wound and get ready for next season. I think Patrick O'Sullivan will go on to make a good NHL player, Justin Williams will regain his form and help the Kings next year, and the 2nd might or might not come back to harm the Kings. There's too many "if's" to learn much more than that.

*Alyn McCauley, Michal Handzus, Jarret Stoll, Matt Greene, Dan Cloutier, etc.

Counterpoint:

Justin Williams' injury history:

Feb 16, 2009: Broken hand, sidelined indefinitely.
Dec 4, 2008: Missed 25 games (achilles tendon).
Sep 17, 2008: Achilles tendon, sidelined indefinitely.
Apr 5, 2008: Missed the last 2 games of the regular season (back injury).
Apr 2, 2008: Back injury, day-to-day.
Apr 1, 2008: Missed 43 games (torn ACL).
Dec 21, 2007: Torn ACL, remainder of the regular season.
Oct 4, 2005: Shoulder injury, day-to-day.
Mar 27, 2004: Missed 1 game (bruised ankle).
Mar 25, 2004: Bruised ankle, day-to-day.
Feb 21, 2004: Missed 3 games (broken left wrist).
Feb 13, 2004: Broken left wrist, sidelined indefinitely.
Apr 6, 2003: Missed 36 games (sprained left knee).
Apr 4, 2003: Sprained left knee, day-to-day.
Jan 20, 2003: Sprained left knee, remainder of the regular season.
Jan 18, 2003: Sprained left knee, left Saturday's game.
Nov 27, 2002: Missed 5 games (strained left shoulder).
Nov 15, 2002: Strained left shoulder, early December.
Dec 16, 2001: Missed 3 games (sprained right shoulder).
Dec 10, 2001: Sprained right shoulder, day-to-day.
Mar 19, 2001: Missed 12 games (broken finger).
Feb 22, 2001: Broken finger, late March.

***

Congratulations to Sean O'Donnell and Erik Ersberg for signing contract extensions of one year and two years, respectively. O'Donnell is awesome and kind of reminds me of a really nice Ron Perlman, while Erik Ersberg looks like an elf and tends a pretty good net to boot. I was expecting the O'Donnell re-signing because he's worked out so well and he should slot in nicely into that spot currently occupied by Denis Gauthier (5th defenseman, penalty kill specialist) nicely next season. The Ersberg signing, on the other hand, was a pretty big shock, especially for so cheap. I mean, $750K a year for a 27 year-old backstop that has averaged a .913 SV% over his career? Maybe he thought they meant 750 Euros or something. I like the Ersberg signing because it provides a performance floor for our younger goaltender, Quick and Bernier. The line is now at .910 SV%; dip below that and Ersberg is taking your spot. At the very least it provides competition, and from my experience goaltenders are the most competitive people on the planet so I think it'll work out well.

***

Wouldn't it suck to play for a team called the Stars? It sounds like a WNBA or Arena League team.

Prediction: 4-3, Kings. Goals by a heartbroken Kopitar, Stoll, Johnson and Harrold

The Rod Langway Award leaders

James Mirtle — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 20:28:48 -0000

Here's an updated look at the league's top defensive defencemen at the all-star break, based on a look at quality of competition and goals against at even strength and while shorthanded.

Players have to have played at least 30 games this season and a significant role on the penalty kill to qualify:

	NAME	TEAM	GP	QCMP	EVGA/60	SHGA/60
1	NICK SCHULTZ	MIN	44	0.06	1.69	3.87
2	MARC STAAL	NYR	45	0.07	2.17	3.56
3	KIM JOHNSSON	MIN	43	0.04	1.90	2.25
4	BRENT SEABROOK	CHI	45	0.09	1.93	5.34
5	PAUL MARTIN	N.J	42	0.06	1.71	5.49
6	ROB SCUDERI	PIT	47	0.08	1.92	5.83
7	SEAN O'DONNELL	L.A	44	0.04	1.84	4.74
8	ROB BLAKE	S.J	43	0.05	1.88	5.14
9	M-E VLASIC	S.J	45	0.05	1.91	5.03
10	PAUL MARA	NYR	45	0.00	1.59	1.24
11	NICKLAS LIDSTROM	DET	44	0.10	2.34	4.49
12	ZDENO CHARA	BOS	46	0.07	1.92	5.95
13	WILLIE MITCHELL	VAN	47	0.07	1.86	6.39
14	DUNCAN KEITH	CHI	41	0.07	1.99	5.99
15	KEVIN BIEKSA	VAN	38	0.07	2.39	4.15
16	ANTON VOLCHENKOV	OTT	31	0.09	2.32	5.63
17	DENNIS SEIDENBERG	CAR	41	0.09	2.46	5.49
18	JAN HEJDA	CBJ	46	0.11	2.17	6.76
19	DAN GIRARDI	NYR	45	0.00	2.01	3.53
20	MATT GREENE	L.A	44	0.03	1.94	5.57
21	MIKE GREEN	WSH	35	-0.02	1.88	2.21
22	GREG ZANON	NSH	46	0.04	2.31	5.56
23	MIKE COMMODORE	CBJ	46	0.10	2.33	6.77
24	ROBYN REGEHR	CGY	44	0.02	2.31	4.19
25	CORY SARICH	CGY	46	-0.02	1.60	4.59
26	DENNIS WIDEMAN	BOS	45	0.00	1.86	5.58
27	TIM GLEASON	CAR	38	0.10	2.05	8.29
28	KIMMO TIMONEN	PHI	43	0.08	2.51	5.99
29	DAN BOYLE	S.J	44	-0.01	2.08	3.61
30	KURT SAUER	PHX	42	0.09	1.96	8.91

Newcomers to the list: Seidenberg, Hejda, Greene, Green, Zanon, Commodore, Regehr, Sarich, Wideman, Boyle

All of the names in the top half of the list have been there for a while, but some of the newcomers make sense. The Hejda-Commodore pairing has been terrific the past month-plus for the Blue Jackets, while Mike Green has terrific numbers in big, big minutes in Washington.

Nick Schultz and Kim Johnsson always post terrific numbers for the Wild, as does Martin from the Devils and Vlasic for the Sharks. Some of the 'surprise' names are guys like Sean O'Donnell and Dennis Seidenberg (who has a poor plus-minus number) but if you talk to people in those markets, they've quietly had strong seasons. You'll hear the same about guys like Zanon and Greene and Sauer.

Regehr and Sarich, meanwhile, have been a big part in helping Calgary rocket to the top of the standings.

Honourable mentions: Phillips, Lydman, Doughty, Ballard, Hamrlik, Bouwmeester

The Affirmative View: Decisions have been made the die has been cast

Down Goes Brown — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 16:15:05 -0000

Editor's Note: Since it looks like this Burke thing is as good as done why not take a look at where each side stands. For the affirmative I present DGB of Down Goes Brown fame who will outline exactly why the Brian Burke hiring should be a slam dunk.

Today's news that Brian Burke is leaving Anaheim and will presumably be landing in Toronto shortly has been met with a mixed reaction among Leaf fans. Many bloggers, most notably MF37, have made the case against Burke.

Well, for the first and probably only time, I'm going to be the voice of optimism in Leafland. I think Burke is a good choice for Leafs GM, and they should move forward with locking him up as soon as possible.

Here's why.

Cliff Fletcher is not the long-term answer

I love Cliff Fletcher. He gets permanent legend status in my book thanks to his work rebuilding the Leafs in the early 90s, and he's done a reasonably good job this time around.

But he's not the long-term GM of this team. The man is 97 years old. Yes, he could certainly finish the season if he needed to. But now he doesn't need to.

Burke's not the best GM in the league, but he's the best one available right now

No Leaf fan thinks Burke is a perfect GM (although you should be prepared to read plenty of articles today claiming that we do). He has his faults, and his record is spotty. Even his Cup-winning Ducks team was largely built by Bryan Murray.

Are there GMs out there who could be better fits? Sure. Lou Lamoriello comes to mind. Doug Wilson, Bob Gainey, and David Poile do too. (But not Jim Rutherford, please. We've been down that Carolina one-hit-wonder road once before.)

So Burke may not be the Mr. Right. But he is Mr. Right Now.

Those other guys aren't available now, and may not be for a long time. Yes, some could have openings to negotiate in the off-season, but that's far from a guarantee. The Leafs will always be able to find somebody, somewhere, who could be a better choice than the guy in front of them. At some point, you need to pull the trigger.

And remember, the most critical date on the Leafs calendar this year is the trade deadline. If at all possible, they should have their long-term GM in place by then.

Besides...

Burke's not the best, but he's still pretty good

No, his drafting record isn't great. No problem, since Cliff has already dealt all the Leafs draft picks.

Besides, draft success is largely a function of the scouting department, not to mention a healthy dose of luck. I'm not worried about Burke's success is small-ish markets like Vancouver and Anaheim. I want to know if he'll be able to build a top-level scouting staff in Toronto. Nobody has managed to do it yet, but if Burke can use his connections he may have a shot.

Beyond that, the most common knock on Burke is that he didn't really build the Ducks Cup winner. And while that's mostly true, it's still not fair. Dozens of GMs have inherited championship-calibre rosters without ever winning a thing. And that's just in Ottawa.

Burke may not have drafted Getzlaf and Perry, but he did hit a home run on a blockbuster trade (Pronger) and two huge free agent signings (Niedermayer & Selanne), not to mention adding solid pieces like Beauchemin, O'Donnell and Marchant.

As for not being able to manage the cap, I'm reserving judgement. The NHL has only had a salary cap for four years, and Burke won a championship one of those years. That's not bad.

Burke's arrival means Richard Peddie's departure

Burke is, as they like to say, a "strong personality". Put another way, he's kind of a dick. And while that may be bad news for the local media, it's great news for Leaf fans. Because we've heard several times that Burke will never come to Toronto if he has to deal with Richard Peddie. He wants the Colangelo Plan, or it's no deal.

That means that from the moment Burke walks in the door, Leaf fans should never have to see Richard Peddie empty suit on their TV screen again. And if Peddie breaks his promise, there's an excellent chance that Burke will kill him with his bare hands.

That alone is reason to want Burke in Toronto ASAP.