Daily Faceoff Show: Salvador Explains Why Offense Is Down

Much has been made about the NHL’s decision to crack down on cross-checking penalties that have run rampant in recent years.

Many people thought it was much needed and in turn, result in more goal-scoring. More penalties equal more power-play chances, which in turn, results in more power-play goals — it’s a straight across concept, but as Daily Faceoff’s Bryce Salvador reported on the Daily Faceoff Show Monday, that isn’t the case.

‘I was in the camp that with the new cross-checking rules that powerplay were going to be up, that powerplay goals would be as well. As I dug into the numbers, that hasn’t been the case. Yes, the cross-checking penalties have been up 45%… but look at what trend has happened,” said Salvador, adding that teams are now being more cautious about taking all kinds of penalties.

“Now what has happened is the total amount of powerplays has gone down eight percent, which has then led to a reduction in powerplay goals. I don’t know if this is what the league ultimately was hoping for. I think they wanted more powerplays and more power-play goals. I think what we’ve seen now through 78 games now… is that the goals have been flat.”

How flat? Well in the 2020-21 campaign there was an average of six goals scored per game. Through 78 games not including those Sunday night, there’s been an average of 6.1 goals per game — virtually the same number.

The consequences are likely unintentional, but for a league that’s centered around goal scoring, I doubt the NHL is happy with the early returns.

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Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@oilersnation.com.

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