(Candice Ward/USA Today Sports)
Ben Scrivens, goaltender for the Edmonton Oilers, stopped all 59 shots he faced during the Oilers’ 3-0 victory over the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday.
Our heat map of Oilers goalie Ben Scrivens’ record save night http://t.co/kgjLw0M4cd http://t.co/jkXmoHd5ia pic.twitter.com/bXcJaKfsmm
— SportingCharts (@sportingcharts) January 30, 2014
That performance set an NHL regular season record for saves in a shutout during the expansion era (since 1967-68), knocking a 54-save night by Phoenix’s Mike Smith on April 3, 2012, out of the record books.
How did Ben scrivens stop 59 shots and get a shut out ?
— MooOo (@hammydammy) January 31, 2014
The easy answer is the shots weren’t all that dangerous. Using the above shot-location information, coupled with shot type and strength of play, we can determine the likelihood of any shot Scrivens faced that night of becoming a goal, which averaged 8.4 percent. The league average save percentage this season is .913, meaning your typical shot in the NHL has an 8.7 percent chance of lighting the lamp, indicating that while plentiful, the quality of shots Scrivens faced were not all that spectacular. Just 17 of the 59 shots he faced had a higher probability of converting to a goal than what we would expect on average. More than a third were less than half as likely to tickle the twine and nine were one-third as likely than average.
The question we should be asking is: how did the Oilers defense allow that many shots to begin with?
Since 1987-88, there have been six games in which a goaltender has faced 59 shots or more in regulation. Only one other was during the salary cap era, when Carolina allowed 60 shots against in an October contest against the New York Islanders.
|
Date |
Tm |
Opp |
Result |
GA |
SA |
|
|
1989-03-12 |
PIT |
@ |
CHI |
W 6-5 |
5 |
62 |
|
1990-02-24 |
PIT |
@ |
MTL |
L 1-11 |
11 |
61 |
|
1991-02-23 |
QUE |
@ |
CGY |
L 8-10 |
10 |
59 |
|
1992-12-26 |
SJS |
LAK |
W 7-2 |
2 |
59 |
|
|
2008-10-25 |
CAR |
@ |
NYI |
W 4-3 |
3 |
60 |
|
2014-01-29 |
EDM |
SJS |
W 3-0 |
0 |
59 |
It shouldn’t be surprising that Edmonton’s defense would put it in such esteemed company. Ignoring special teams and lead-protecting situations the Oilers have been outshot 776-610 this season, the third-worst differential in the league.
Scrivens certainly pulled off the incredible, but if Edmonton wants to get back to the postseason with any regularity, they are going to need to address the porous defense.
