What The Analytics Say About Elias Lindholm's First 20 Games With The Vancouver Canucks
Lindholm has seven points in 20 games since being acquired by the Canucks.
Photo by Bob Frid-USA TODAY Sports - What The Analytics Say About Elias Lindholm's First 20 Games With The Vancouver CanucksElias Lindholm's first 20 games with the Vancouver Canucks have been challenging. It took a while for the former Calgary Flames center to get comfortable, but is starting to show why Canucks management gave up such a large package to acquire him. In honour of his 20th game, here is a look at what the analytics say about his short time in Vancouver.
According to Natural Stat Trick, Lindholm has played 272:36 at even strength during his Canucks tenure. For reference, that ranks fourth among Vancouver's forwards over the past 20 games. So far, he has been used in different roles but mainly has seen time as the Canucks third-line center. While a spot in the bottom six was not envisioned when Vancouver first acquired him, having him as the third-line center allows the Canucks to balance out their center depth which will be crucial come playoff time.
One area where Lindholm has had a significant impact is faceoffs. Through the first 49 games of the season, Vancouver ranked 16th overall with a 50% win rate. Since Lindholm joined the team, the Canucks rank first at 55.8%. Breaking down the numbers further, Vancouver has seen their defensive zone faceoff win percentage jump from 49.7% to 56.7% and their shorthanded faceoff percentage increase from 43.9% to 55.2%. His addition to the lineup has given Rick Tocchet another reliable option in the faceoff dot, allowing the Canucks coach to feel confident whenever Vancouver takes a crucial faceoff in their own zone.
Now, over to the even-strength analytics, which have not been kind to Lindholm. Since joining Vancouver, he has a Goals For Percentage (GF%) of 39.13% and a Shots For Percentage (SF%) of 46.80. While he is over 50% in Scoring Chances For Percentage (SCF%) at 50.66%, he once again drops below 50% in High-Danger Scoring Chances For Percentage (HDCF%), currently sitting at 42.57%.
While it has been a shaky start, the good news is that Lindholm is starting to find his groove. He has posted positive analytics in three of his last four games and is starting to generate not just scoring chances but high-danger scoring chances. Lindholm is also starting to find some chemistry with Vasily Podkolzin, which should help make the Canucks a deeper team. With time, his analytics should start to balance out and should show just how valuable he can be to Vancouver's lineup.
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