There has been a lot of discussion in recent weeks about the Blues success killing penalties. A lot factors come into play here. To me a lot of comes down to how prepared the Blues are in terms of their understanding of the opponents tendencies on the power play. This is where Assistant Coach Brad Shaw comes into play. This guy has done an admirable job coaching up the Blues PK unit since joining the organization after the NHL lockout.
Players must be willing to sacrifice to be a good penalty killer. Blocking shots is no fun, but the ones who show the courage to put their bodies on the line and get in front of pucks are some of the true unsung hero’s in the sport. We’ve seen our share in St. Louis in recent years when you think of guys such as Dallas Drake and Ryan Johnson to name a few.
Probably the most important key to having a strong PK unit is having a goaltender who can stop the puck. Chris Mason has been pretty solid over the last two seasons and is a huge part of the Blues PK success.
Of course there are other factors that come into play such as stick and body positioning, winning puck battles etc…but at the end of the day you need the players to execute and make things happen.
I have a feeling very few fans around the NHL have ever heard of Blues D-man Mike Weaver. Why would they? He doesn’t score, doesn’t earn huge NHL money, he’ll never be a part of an NHL all star team, and is always considered just an extra D-man to have on your team.
That last part is starting to change a little at least in St. Louis where Weaver has turned some heads this year by proving his significant value. He may only be 5’9 and just over 180 pounds, but he plays a much bigger role on the ice. If there ever was a penalty kill specialist, the self made NHL veteran Mike Weaver is certainly the guy.
Known for his long arms and stick to compensate for his lack of size, no one will ever accuse Weaver of short changing anybody. He’s a battler who extremely strong on his feet and plays bigger than his size would indicate.
I had a recent conversation with Weaver’s agent Jerry Buckley about how to best explain the true value this guy brings to the ice. At the end of the day you’ll see Weaver is more than just a sixth D-man, he’s one of the top PK D-men in the league with statistical analysis to back up his production. Weaver has been receiving a lot of accolades as of late for his shorthanded play. Just how good is he?
With some really nice work done by Buckley we’ve been able to determine a players PK production by looking at the total number of shorthanded minutes played along with the number of power play goals the opposing team scores.
These stats aren't officially listed on NHL.com as a category but are based on the official NHL stats listed. You can easily argue PK production should be an official NHL stat as it gives you a better understanding of a player's overall production. The numbers below basically show an individual players penalty kill production (PK production).
We all know the goal of a penalty killer is to prevent the opposition from scoring a PP goal. It makes sense to know on average just how many short handed minutes the player plays per short handed goal against- the higher the number the better.
As of Saturday Weaver was 1st on the Blues and 5th in the entire NHL in total shorthanded minutes played so far this season. He’s actually 2nd in the NHL in shorthanded minutes played per game. We also take a look at where Weaver ranks last season and where he currently sits among all NHL defenseman.
2008-09 St. Louis Blues Defensemen PK production (among St. Louis defenseman who played more than 100 total shorthanded minutes during the season)
Player (avg. short handed min. /gp) total short handed minutes / PPGA =PK Production
(08-09 Season)
Mike Weaver (2:53) 167 / 7 = 23 mins
Eric Brewer (4:03) 113 / 9 = 12 mins
Barrett Jackman (4:23) 359 / 33 = 10 mins
ROman Polak (2:57) 204 / 23 = 8 mins
Jay McKee (3:18) 228 / 28 = 8 mins
PK production for 2009-10 Top 10 NHL defensemen in total Shorthanded minutes this season (as of 3-12-10)
Player (avg shmins/gp) total shmins / PPGA = PK Production
(09-10 season)
1. Jay Bouwmeester (3:58) 265 / 25 = 10.6 minutes
2. Scott Niedermayer (3:51) 254 / 39 = 6.5 minutes
3. Chris Phillips (3:44) 254 / 23 = 11.0 minutes
4. Chris Pronger (3:44) 246 / 29 = 8.4 minutes
5. Mike Weaver (4:00)* 244 / 18 = 13.5 minutes**
6. Ron Hainsey (3:49) 244 / 34 = 7.1 minutes
7. Brad Stuart (3:34) 239 / 33 = 7.2 minutes
8. Dan Girardi (3:32) 237 / 27 = 8.7 minutes
9. Robyn Regehr (3:35) 237 / 25 = 9.4 minutes
10. Marc Staal (3:32) 237 / 27 = 8.7 minutes
* Weaver ranks 2nd in the entire NHL in shmins/g
** Weaver ranks 1st in PK production among the top 10 NHL defensemen in total shorthanded minutes played.
PK Production= The average amount of PK minutes played per shorthanded goal against
PPGA= Power Play goals against while on the ice
Other Points:
-St. Louis is currently tied with San Jose with the top penalty kill % in the NHL.
- St. Louis has the 2nd best PK in the NHL over the last two seasons (84.9%)
- St. Louis had the best PK in the 2nd half of last year in the NHL which shot them up in league PK rankings (and standings). The Blues success on the power play last season rally took off once Weaver joined the 1st PK unit and his minutes played killing penalties saw a drastic increase.
-Top PK Value- As everyone in hockey knows, special teams are critical to a team's success. I’ve always been taught if the combination of a teams PP% and PK% add up to at least 100, it’s a very strong indication the team has excellent special teams.
If you’re looking to improve your special teams in the summer, PK is by far the cheaper of the two units to fix. Add the salaries of the players on some of the top PP units in the NHL and you shouldn’t be surprised by their success... it's huge. Fixing a NHL team’s PP can often mean spending big bucks to acquire a player who can add some real firepower. In the cap environment teams need to find value to help their special teams...often times real value comes in players who can help your PK as they can be easier and much cheaper to acquire. Weaver’s overall value both in the NHL and on he Blues may be much bigger than most give him credit for.
Blues Clues!
Keith Tkachuk almost took another puck in the face Sunday night as a Erik Johnson shot sailed just over his head. The longtime NHL veteran has been toying with the idea of finishing the year with a visor after losing multiple teeth several weeks ago. He’s experienced a number of close calls since then including blocking a T.J. Oshie shot with his hand that was headed towards his head. That shot broke his finger that forced him to miss an additional seven games. Suddenly that visor is making more sense by the game.
Come meet Mike Weaver tonight at Johnny Mac’s Sporting Goods on Watson road from 6-7. Weaver will be my guest on Blues Buzz which can be heard on am 590 the Fan in St. Louis.
More to come,
Andy Strickland
[email protected] 
St Louis Blues Blogger •1380 ESPN • 
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