Troy Stecher Could Replace Cody Ceci
Troy Stecher may be a top four defenseman option for the Edmonton Oilers.
EDMONTON -- Ken Holland said that he would acquire another veteran defenseman for the Edmonton Oilers. Many insiders also used the phrase "depth defenseman."
At surface level Troy Stecher certainly fits that bill.
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When you take a closer look at Stecher's numbers - and how they compare to current Oilers, you see a much more useful defender.
The eight year NHL veteran is no stranger to playing significant minutes. For the Arizona Coyotes this season he has averaged 18:26 per game - fourth most on the team. Although for the Coyotes they distribute minutes more evenly along their six defensemen.
That's three minutes more ice time than both Brett Kulak and Vincent Desharnais - and about a minute and a half less than Cody Ceci.
Ceci has a worse Corsi For % (CF%) against elite competition (49.5%) than four of the other five regular defensemen on the Oilers. The only other defender who is worse is Vincent Desharnais.
Conversely, the three best on the Oilers against elite competition are Evan Bouchard, Mattias Ekholm and Brett Kulak. Could Stecher be a good partner for Kulak?
The correct answer is, possibly. Looking at Stecher's numbers reveals a couple of things. He has a CF% similar to Ceci against elites - 48.7%. Yes, that is lower than Ceci, but relative to Stecher's former teammates he did quite well.
Only Michael Kesselring and Sean Durzi did better against elites, while JJ Moser was a touch below.
That presents Kris Knoblauch with a unique opportunity. He could sit Desharnais for a couple games to play Stecher with Kulak - and then give that pairing tougher deployment. This would allow him to reunite Ceci with Darnell Nurse and deploy them against softer competition.
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Desharnais has been a great defenseman for the Oilers this season, but I imagine that it would be easier for the coaching staff to convince him to sit a game than it would to rest Ceci.
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