Kevin Klein

I was listening to the radio yesterday, and I couldn’t believe my ears. Hockey was being discussed, and it wasn’t Boomer and Carton or Michael Kay and Don La Greca. Once I got over my initial shock of hearing hockey on the radio discussed by a voice in which I could not identify, I started listening to the topic at hand.

The topic intrigued me: When Kevin Klein comes back, who should sit?

It got me thinking. Marc Staal, Dan Girardi, Ryan McDonagh, and Keith Yandle are not coming out of the lineup. All have been pretty solid in this series as well. So it’s really between Matt Hunwick and Dan Boyle.

The obvious choice is Hunwick. But Hunwick has been pretty solid in his spot as Klein’s replacement. He’s been driving possession, solid positionally, and is a pretty good skater too. He’s been pretty sheltered in his zone starts with Yandle, so you expect him to be able to drive possession, but he’s meeting expectations. Nothing to complain about there.

Boyle has also been driving possession, but has faced tougher competition and tougher zone starts, at least through the four games in the playoffs. But it takes more than three games to really decide who has been better since Klein’s injury.

Most people look at Boyle’s lack of production and the horrid powerplay and assume he’s been playing terribly. That’s actually not the case. While the powerplay has been particularly horrible –and I think the onus there is on the forwards, not the defense– Boyle has been solid at even strength.

Usage chart.

Regular season usage chart after Klein’s injury.

Looking at this usage chart, one can make a reasonable argument that Boyle has been better than Hunwick at even strength since Klein’s injury. Boyle is a positive relative possession player (relative meaning compared to his teammates’ performance with him on the ice versus off the ice), despite playing significantly tougher minutes. Hunwick has the best relative possession numbers on the team in this span, although that is partially attributed to his favorable deployment.

Yes. Deployment matters, whether you like the stats or not. Hunwick gets cupcake minutes, and performs very well. Boyle does not get cupcake minutes, and performs fairly well.

While regular season numbers –for the sake of sample size– matter, the playoffs are a whole different animal. Alain Vigneault’s deployment changes, and he leans on certain guys in big minutes. So while the above usage chart is better for larger samples, the below chart may actually be more accurate in terms of AV’s coaching style.

Playoff usage chart.

Playoff usage chart.

Hunwick is still getting the same deployment, with slightly worse results (still positive). However, Boyle is getting much tougher minutes and fewer offensive zone starts, and is putting up the same numbers. At even strength, the edge, believe it or not, goes to Boyle.

There’s also the matter of special teams. Hunwick and Boyle receive the same amount (roughly) of time at even strength, but Hunwick is glued to the bench on the powerplay and on the penalty kill. This puts a huge burden on the other five defensemen.

In the end, I think Hunwick is the guy that comes out of the lineup, which really shouldn’t surprise anyone. But it was interesting to hear that discussion between Boyle or Hunwick. What do you guys think?

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