Two CH defenders in the top-5 of the most punished players in the NHL
As of today, January 13, 2023, the Canadiens rank first among the most punished teams in the NHL this season. The club has amassed a total of 537 penalty minutes, with the Panthers (515) and Wild (515) close behind.
Indiscipline is one of the factors that explain the recent failures of the CH on the ice and there is no secret at this level. Martin St-Louis has said it openly a few times: it’s the penalties that have been sinking the club for some time.
Short.
Seeing this « statistic », I decided to dig a little to see the identity of the players who have received the most penalty minutes since the start of the campaign, and I was a little surprised to see that two CH players found themselves among the top-5 in this chapter.
Arber Xhekaj comes first (72) and it’s a bit normal since he has a few fights to his credit since the beginning of the year. It goes quickly, in five minutes…
But where it gets special is when you see that Chris Wideman comes in at number four on the list, tied with Brandon Montour:
It’s special because Wideman has been left out a number of times this season. The veteran CH defender has only played 27 games since the start of the campaign… And when he plays, he spends an average of 14 minutes and 18 seconds on the ice.
However, the CH number 6 is not recognized as a physical defender or a guy who is necessarily aggressive on the ice. It is in this perspective that I jumped a bit when I saw the number of penalty minutes that he has been awarded so far this season (59).
Does this have an impact in the manager’s decision-making process when he decides to put Wideman in the stands? Possible.
Somehow the guys will have to find a way to spend less time in the dungeon. Because it directly affects team performance and confidence. And to see that the club have two players in the top-5 most punished guys this year certainly doesn’t help the cause.
stay out of the boxas the other would say.
A lot of
– $5,000 fine for Mikhail Sergachev.
Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Mikhail Sergachev has been fined $5,000, the maximum allowable under the CBA, for roughing Vancouver Canucks forward Conor Garland.#GoBolts #Canucks pic.twitter.com/MHdMjoiqlm
—Complete Hockey News (@CompleteHkyNews) January 13, 2023
– Same for Clayton Keller.
Arizona Coyotes forward Clayton Keller has been fined $5,000, the maximum allowable under the CBA, for cross-checking Ottawa Senators defenseman Erik Brannstrom.#Yotes #GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/sulUhfgK0u
—Complete Hockey News (@CompleteHkyNews) January 13, 2023
– Happy birthday, Connor!
Connor McDavid turns 26 today.
IMO he is the most advanced player ever in the history of the NHL.McDavid leads the 2015 NHL Draft class in:
Goals: 274 (75 more than K. Connor-2nd, 199)
Assists: 502 (151 more than M.Marner-2nd, 351)
Points: 776 (271 more than M. Marner-2nd, 505) pic.twitter.com/QTRok7w4Xs—Bob Stauffer (@Bob_Stauffer) January 13, 2023
– It is not enough. He should have been suspended for life!
Hockey player tackled by coach: Instructor suspended 10 years https://t.co/KDbeWDVme1
— TVA Sports (@TVASports) January 13, 2023
– The bickering between Michel Villeneuve and Pascal Bérubé?
As some of your colleagues point out to me, stick to politics…😉 https://t.co/ZFg8UFY1sT
— Michel Villeneuve (@lederniervrai) January 13, 2023
