Since the NHL started tracking shot block data after the 2004-05 lockout, players are getting in front of pucks in a way that hasn't been tracked before. Could it be teams copying the champions?

As we marvel at the speed and skill in today's NHL, teams are resorting to an old-fashioned strategy to try to keep goals off the board.

Believe it or not, shot-blocking has reached its highest level since the NHL started tracking the data following the 2004-05 lockout.

With these numbers, we can see that eight of the 12 busiest shot-blocking seasons in the last 19 years are happening this year. Even though it's only halfway through the season, these rates aren't expected to move much based on comparisons with mid-season numbers from past years.

Here's the list of the most blocks per 60 minutes of play in a single season. The eight entries from 2023-24 are highlighted.

Admittedly, we don't know how today's commitment to blocking compares with the days of the Dead Puck Era. Back then, defensemen like Craig Ludwig doubled the size of their shins in hopes of getting in front of as many pucks as possible.

What we do know is that goalies were seeing fewer than 28 shots a game in the late 1990s and early 2000s, the lowest volume since that data started being collected in the mid-1950s, according to hockey-reference.com. 

In recent years, goalies have regularly been facing more than 30 shots a game. 

Last season, teams were putting 31.1 shots a game on net while blocking an average of 14.72 shots. This year, goalies are seeing just 30.5 shots per game, the lowest level since 2020-21 and second-lowest since 2016-17. Part of that change is because of the increase in blocking, which has gone up to 15.78 blocks per game. 

Given the New York Islanders' longstanding reputation for playing grinding, low-event hockey, it doesn't feel especially surprising to see them leading this list. But their season-by-season results show that they're blocking more than three extra shots a game compared to last year, up to 19.17 from 15.96. This year's number is well above any earlier season — their previous high was 16.77 in 2008-09.

Over in Philadelphia, John Tortorella has made no secret of the fact he loves a good shot block. Before he arrived at Wells Fargo Center, the Flyers' previous high was 16.21 blocks per 60 minutes from the 2012-13 season. Last year, Torts' group set a new team standard at 17.02. This year, that number has risen again to 17.64.

What's behind the rise in blocking? 

Maybe some of it comes from desperation. San Jose, Chicago and Columbus are all in the bottom five of the NHL standings.

Are players who don't trust their goaltenders more inclined to sacrifice their bodies to stop pucks from reaching the net? That doesn't really correlate statistically. Of this season's big-blocking eight, the Sharks are the only team that sits in the bottom seven in team save percentage at 5-on-5, although the Blackhawks, Blue Jackets and Flames are just above them and also in the bottom 10.

The best explanation may lie in the tendency of NHL teams to emulate squads that have success.

After the Vegas Golden Knights steamrolled their way to the Stanley Cup last spring, there was lots of talk about their big-bodied group of defensemen, who wouldn't hesitate to do whatever was necessary to make life easy for their goaltenders and hard on opponents. 

In the 2023 playoffs, Vegas led all teams with a whopping 19.94 blocks per 60 minutes. Alec Martinez, Alex Pietrangelo and Brayden McNabb led the way, while Zach Whitecloud, Shea Theodore and Nicolas Hague weren't far behind. And you might not think of Jack Eichel as a guy who sacrifices his body, but he led all forwards in the playoffs with 30 blocked shots, more than a block per game. 

This trait's been building over the last four seasons in Vegas, whether it was Peter DeBoer or Bruce Cassidy behind the bench.

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The Golden Knights' 17.94 blocks-per-60 last season were the highest since Calgary and Buffalo in 2014-15. This year, they're blocking even more — and so are the Islanders, Sharks and Blue Jackets. 

Where winners lead, the rest of the league will follow.