We’re in the dog days of the off-season, so let’s again give a stick tap to Jonathan Quick for providing some of the best Kings content of the last couple of weeks. His follow up to Elite Snipers 101 scouts the offensive zone tendencies of Steven Stamkos, Anze Kopitar, John Tavares, Max Pacioretty, and the one-two combination of Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin. Some of his best observations follow:
On Stamkos:
Whenever he sets up shop on the power play on the left side (the goalie’s right side), it’s as threatening a situation as it gets for a goalie. Because in that position, Stamkos can can unleash a one-timer to the goalie’s blocker on the short side. Stamkos’ release might be the quickest in the NHL — especially off the one-timer. If you’re trying to make a reaction save with your waffle, you’re in trouble.
On Kopitar:
Anze grinds down opponents with those “heavy minutes” that keep goalies deep in their knees and trap opposing centers deep at their own goal line. That’s why you might not see a lot of Anze on SportsCenter, because he does the dirty work 10 seconds before the goal that doesn’t fit into the highlight.
On Tavares:
Just like with Crosby, Tavares doesn’t kill you with one thing, he kills you with how insanely balanced his game is in all aspects. Tavares can deke you, or roof a shot, or make a great pass, or if nothing is there, he’ll do the smartest thing and chip it in deep to live another day. He’s similar to Crosby in another way, too. He’s one of the most tenacious guys I’ve ever played against.
On Pacioretty:
When you’re playing Max, you have to be very aware of his quick snapshot. He’s able to release the shot so quickly and with so much power that you have to know where it’s going ahead of time to have a chance to stop it. The thing that separates Max is that his shots are as accurate and consistent as you’re going to see in the NHL. He can pick a little sliver of space better than anyone, so if you’re deep in your net when he releases it, it’s game over.
On Benn:
One thing that Jamie does better than anyone is using the defenseman as a screen in 1-on-1 situations. He uses his long reach and unbelievable hands to shoot the puck through the defenseman’s legs. What makes this difficult for a goalie is that it’s hard to pick up the release. You’re watching the puck on the outside of your defenseman’s legs, but then Benn will pull the puck into his feet and shoot it inside the leg. That millisecond that you lose sight of the puck behind your defenseman’s skate makes all the difference in the world.
On Seguin:
You can’t cheat on Benn’s shot because Seguin is really good at letting him draw attention and floating into open space on the weak side. One funny thing that Seguin likes to do is drop down to one knee when he shoots a one-timer. This is similar to Ovechkin, but unlike Ovi, Seguin does a short half-slapper wind-up. It allows him get all his weight into the shot but still get it off quickly. He scores from some really unorthodox angles.
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