It is not as dramatic a game-changer as in football or lacrosse, but possession matters a great deal in hockey, especially when there is someone in the penalty box.
Among the many things that John Hynes did not like about his team’s 4-1 loss to Pittsburgh in its final outing of October was its propensity to lose faceoffs. As the Wild coach cited in a clearly disappointed postgame press conference, Minnesota won two special teams faceoffs – just two – during the 60 minutes they were facing the Penguins.
One of the reasons the Wild signed Nico Sturm in the offseason was the German center’s historically good faceoff stats. Of course, Sturm was injured before ever playing a game this season, and after back surgery, his future was uncertain.
But if fans were questioning Hynes’ decision to sit rookie Danila Yurov on Saturday, and add sporadically-used Ben Jones as the fourth line center to face Vancouver, a glance at the season stats for faceoffs tells the tale.
Jones played just three of the Wild’s first 12 games this season, but in those contests, he won more than 70 percent of the time when the puck was dropped with Jones staring down an opposing center. That success does not come by accident.
“Obviously some guys make a living off it, so it’s something to take pride in,” Jones said, following the Wild’s Friday practice at TRIA Rink.
There is plenty of video study that goes into knowing what an opponent might do when the puck is dropped. And sometimes it comes down to luck. But doing your homework, if it provides even a slight edge, can be important.
“Sometimes it comes down to some technique stuff you can look at. Sometimes it comes down to the players you’re going against,” said Jones, 26, who began his career with a two-game stint for the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2021-22 season. “It’s kind of a weird little one-on-one battle that happens for some guys. As you get more into the groove of it you get more confidence, you start getting a couple more bounces and sometimes your percentage is better.”
And for a team looking to put a disappointing October in the rearview mirror, any and all bounces are good, especially if the Wild emerge with the puck in their possession.
Briefly
Yurov, who left the Pittsburgh game for a time after taking a shot to the chest in the second period, was a healthy scratch versus Vancouver, per Hynes. The coach said a game off here and there could help Yurov as he makes the transition from the KHL in Russia to the faster, more physical NHL style.
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