Dominic Moore is five-of-12 in his career

Though the skills competition isn’t really a fair way to determine the winner of a hockey game, success in the shootout has granted some teams entry to the postseason and – as Rangers fans know all too well – denied others.

Thanks in large part to Henrik Lundqvist’s heroics, New York has traditionally been a solid shootout club.  The Blueshirts went 4-4 in the event last season and are 53-40 overall since its inception in 2005.

Last season, coach John Tortorella relied heavily on Ryan Callahan and Rick Nash in the shootout and it’s likely that new coach Alain Vigneault will do the same.  It also seems like a no-brainer that Vigneault will deploy one of New York’s most deadly shootout weapons – Mats Zuccarello – now that the Norwegian is back for a full season.  So who could Vigneault turn to in Callahan’s absence to start the season and in the event of future slumps/injuries?  Let’s take a look at how New York’s forwards did in the skills competition last year:

Goals Attempts Percentage
Ryan Callahan 3 7 42.9
Rick Nash 3 7 42.9
Mats Zuccarello 1 2 50.0
J.T. Miller 1 2 50.0
Derek Stepan 1 2 50.0
Derick Brassard 1 2 50.0
Chris Kreider 0 1 0.0
Carl Hagelin 0 1 0.0
Brad Richards 0 3 0.0

And how they’ve performed throughout their careers:

Goals Attempts Percentage
Rick Nash 29 74 36.5%
Brad Richards 26 72 36.1%
Mats Zuccarello 6 12 50.0
Ryan Callahan 6 20 30.0%
Dominic Moore 5 12 41.7%
Derick Brassard 2 7 28.5%
Derek Stepan 2 10 20.0
J.T. Miller 1 2 50.0
Taylor Pyatt 1 13 7.7%
Chris Kreider 0 1 0.0
Benoit Pouliot 0 1 0.0
Carl Hagelin 0 1 0.0
Derek Dorsett 0 1 0.0
Arron Asham 0 2 0.0
Brian Boyle 0 2 0.0

Brad Richards has obviously had a ton of success in the past, but is a ghastly one-of-12 in his two seasons with the Rangers.  Could Dominic Moore be next in line?  He’s probably not the guy you would have guessed, but he has both attempted and converted several more attempts than anyone else on the club.

Thoughts?

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