Kämpf has officially hit his first two weeks as a member of the Canucks; here's how the team has been deploying him.
It’s officially been two weeks since David Kämpf made his Vancouver Canucks debut. Since his first game with the Canucks, Kämpf has seemingly found himself a temporary home on the second-line. With that being said, he’s actually spent a fair bit more time in the neutral and O-zone than some may have expected him to, as many likely penciled him in somewhere around the third when he initially joined the team. Here’s a breakdown of his deployment as a member of the Canucks so far.
Kämpf’s Stats Compared To The Team
In the past six games, Kämpf currently has the 11th-highest minutes played on the Canucks with 87:18 (second-highest among centers). Of these 87:18 minutes, 68:27 have been played while on 5-on-5 (eighth-highest). His 17:25 minutes spent on the penalty kill are the most of all Canucks forwards and fourth among all skaters. Clearly, Kämpf is getting the type of minutes that Vancouver and their fans expected him to.
Looking at other stats, Kämpf has presented himself as relatively rounded-out on the defensive side of the game. He has six shots on net (T-10th), six hits (T-sixth), and five blocked shots (T-fifth). Kämpf has yet to record his first point as a member of the Canucks.
Initially brought in to help down the middle of the ice, particularly defensively and on faceoffs, Kämpf has taken the second-most draws since November 17 with 86 (42 wins, 44 losses). Of centers who have taken more than 30 faceoffs throughout this span of time, he ranks second in FOW% (48.84%).
Looking at Kämpf’s deployment on faceoffs further highlights how Vancouver has been using him as a forward. As it stands, he has been on the ice for 24 offensive zone faceoffs, 39 in the neutral zone, and 43 in the defensive zone. Only center Elias Pettersson (49) has taken more defensive zone faceoffs among all Canucks forwards. Surprisingly enough, however, he ranks first among Canucks forwards in neutral zone faceoffs with 39.
As a whole, Kämpf’s in-zone starts give yet another good look at his deployment. He is currently 16th on the team in offensive zone starts with 38.10%. For reference, Drew O’Connor (60%), Aatu Räty (57.69%), and Kiefer Sherwood (56.36%) all have more than him. With that being said, he has actually recorded more starts in the neutral zone (30) than defensive zone (26).
What The Numbers Are Saying
Again, Kämpf was brought into the organization to provide more presence in the defensive zone, and that’s definitely something he has provided. However, certain stats from his first two weeks with the Canucks indicate that he’s also providing a decent amount of help slightly up the ice as well.
The reason for this is pretty simple. In all but his first game with the Canucks and Saturday night against the Los Angeles Kings, Kämpf has played alongside Brock Boeser and Conor Garland on the second line. Prior to that, he was put alongside MacKenzie MacEachern and Jake DeBrusk.
Before getting into Kämpf’s current linemates’ offensive contributions, here’s a look at his numbers from his first game. Against the Panthers, Kämpf had only one offensive-zone start, but registered four in the neutral zone and seven in the defensive zone. When it comes to faceoffs, he was on for one in the O-zone, seven in the neutral zone, and 10 in the defensive zone — the latter of which tied him for the most of all Canucks forwards.
Given the linemates, it’s expected that Kämpf would gain more neutral zone and O-zone time when moved up to the second line. When put beside either one of Garland or Boeser, Kämpf averages nearly 69% of his faceoffs in either the offensive zone or neutral zone. When played away from either of them, that number drops to around 50% — if not a little less. This line pairing impacts Boeser and Garland as well, making them slightly more geared towards the D-zone. Without Kämpf, their percentage of neutral and O-zone draws rises to around 77% (Garland) and 81% (Boeser).
What Does This Mean?
Boeser, Kämpf, and Garland’s line will momentarily be on pause as the team sorts out Garland’s injury. There is no timeline on Garland’s return quite yet, indicating that if he’s out for a longer period of time, Boeser and Kämpf may find their new linemate in Sherwood. Even so, looking at the numbers from Saturday’s match against the Kings, the trio of forwards still had 13 neutral and O-zone faceoffs compared to their four defensive zone draws.
Playing alongside Boeser and one of Garland or Sherwood on the second line will result in a bit more even-strength time for Kämpf, who was initially brought in to provide more defensive-zone coverage. Giving Kämpf second-line minutes isn’t a bad thing, though one thing that sticks out about this is the fact that he has yet to put up his first point as a Canuck even with these opportunities. With that being said, having a more defensively-sound center in Kämpf alongside two players who can provide decent D-zone presence like Boeser and Garland gives Vancouver some more options when it comes to putting up points and keeping the middle of the ice tidy, rather than just relying on Elias Pettersson and his line.
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