Login

***sve7en*** · 07-07-2020, 01:18 PM

[1582 words]

This is part one of [spoilers] in a deep dive on the MVP race candidates as selected by myself and fellow SJHN reporters and analysts. I wanted to take a holistic look at the various players and storylines that have all converged at potential nominations and votes, much like my group at Hockey Talk Tonight did last season when discussing the MvdH / Williams and Lagerfield / Wagstrom races. This season especially, the competition for the title of Most Valuable Player is incredibly tight, and it only gets harder to decipher when you consider the various definitions of the award. The companion piece on offensive, defensive, and total point share used for some of these metrics will be released simultaneously with the final player review.

You can find the other entries in the series below:

The Case for the S54 J MVP - Ryuuji Minamino
The Case for the S54 J MVP - Cillian Kavanagh
The Case for the S54 J MVP - Jimmy Wagner

Let’s begin.

Rikard Hammarberg

@jtam

The unsung hero

Stats (league rank in parentheses):
Scoring
Goals . . . . . . . . . . 14 (t-26)
Assists . . . . . . . . . 30 (3)
Points. . . . . . . . . . 44 (t-6)
Shots . . . . . . . . . 127 (t-21)
Shooting Pct . . . . 0.1102 (67)
Percent of team goals 0.3014 (2)

ES PP SH
Goals 10 (t-23) 2 (t-45) 2
Assists 18 (t-13) 12 (t-3) 0
Points 28 (t-15) 14 (t-12) 2

Non-scoring
TOI . . . . 933 minutes, 18:39 per game (t-59th overall, t-14th among forwards)
+/- . . . . 0 (t-92)
PIM . . . . 38 (t-25 most)
Hits . . . 39 (t-89)

Advanced
Game Rating . . . . . . 70 (t-7 overall, t-4th among skaters)
Offensive Game Rating . 67 (t-12)
Defensive Game Rating . 71 (t-6)
PDO . . . . . . . . . . 99.3 (t-113)
GF/60 . . . . . . . . . 2.8 (t-53)
GA/60 . . . . . . . . . 3.0 (t-147)
SF/60 . . . . . . . . . 28.0 (t-109)
SA/60 . . . . . . . . . 27.6 (t-83)
Corsi . . . . . . . . . 49.8 (t-105)
Offensive Point Share 3.60 (11)
Defensive Point Share 0.84 (110)
Total Point Share . . . 4.45 (41st overall, 33rd among skaters)
% Team Point Share . . 0.083 (t-31st overall, 23rd among skaters)

Roles:
Lines
3rd line C (Jones | Hammarberg | Forfeit)
1st Powerplay Point (Jones | Johansson | Price | LeBlond | Hammarberg)
3rd Penalty Kill (Hammarberg | Tambo | Leblond | Hillier)
2nd 4 on 4 (Hammarberg | Pritchard | Petrovic | Bergstrom)
2nd 3 on 3 (Hammarberg | Pritchard | Bergman)

Linemates
Ryu Jones - 6G, 22A, 28P, (1PPG, 6PPA, 7PPP)
Jon Forfeit - 7G, 9A, 169P
Taylor Johansson - 9G, 29A, 38P (3PPG, 8PPA, 11PPP)
Ethan Price - 22G, 16A, 38P, (10PPG, 5PPA, 15PPP)
James LeBlond - 8G, 21A, 29P (4PPG, 6PPA, 10PPP)

The story

Rikard Hammarberg is probably the single biggest reason why I’m writing this series.

A third line center wouldn’t normally be an MVP candidate, but he should be. The third line part is inherently misleading, as Rikard logged the second most ice time of Anaheim forwards due to his 50 games on the penalty kill, and his addition to the power play early on into the season as he continued to impress Anaheim management with his production. Anaheim as a whole struggled on the defensive side of things for about a month total between October and November this season, losing nine of ten in brutal fashion, being outscored 60-25 in that stretch as they faced a gauntlet of back to back games. Their slide started as they were worn down from a series of four back to backs with one game in between each, and the fitness struggles would plague them up to the midpoint of the season.

Right before that stretch is when we saw Rikard move to the power play and Hammarberg still produced through the slide, contributing on 7 of the 25 goals in that period (28%), but the goalies, players around him, and the Sweedish center weren’t going to be able to handle the more rested Colorado, Carolina, and Newfoundland offenses that teed off over those four weeks. Hammarberg was +9 outside of that stretch, and while that stretch shouldn’t be dismissed entirely, he put up 5 games over 70 GR as a two-way center and played at a level greater than one would expect from a defensively focused line with tired rookie defensemen behind him.

Rikard’s largest contributions to the Outlaws came from his ability to create something from often little or nothing. Overall, he was a creator and a playmaker, reaching third in the league in assists. As a shorthanded forward, he tied the league best in generating two shorthanded goals. As a third line center, he carried the offensive load surrounded by rookies and defensive focused players around him with a solid top 15 even strength point total. He led the team in points, and was one of two players in the league to contribute to more than 30% of their team’s goals on the season (Sven Svenson, COL). Whatever Anaheim needed from him, he exceeded expectations.

The MVP moment

October 22nd, 2020 - Anaheim, California
Kelowna Knights @ Anaheim Outlaws

In what would eventually be seen in hindsight as a predictor of the western conference finals, two teams who both were starting the season hot faced off on an unsuspecting Thursday night. The Knights were in town boasting a 5-2 record, including a win over the Outlaws who were sitting at 6-3. While a single October game wouldn’t change or decide anything outright, it definitely felt like more than a simple in conference game at the Outlaw Saloon that night.

Anaheim quickly racked up some minor penalties from DuBolk, Jones, and Hunna-Percent, and while the DuBolk one coincided with a Devin Williams high stick, the Outlaws were on the back foot early against an elite scoring unit from Kelowna, who better to play a part in shutting that down than Rikard, who racked up two minutes of shorthanded ice time that night? With the penalties killed off, and time running out in the first, a line change left Taylor Johansson out with Bud Light Lime, and they combined for assists on Hammarberg’s third of the season, canceling out the momentum that Kelowna had established with their 12-3 shot lead.

Johanson would find Hammarberg again in the second, this time on the powerplay via Rhys Pritchard, to put Anaheim up by two. While Kelowna would answer and tie the game up, their high powered offense was contained through 65 minutes, losing in a shootout despite their 35-23 shot lead. Hammarberg took home the first star that night, creating two goals out of the 13 shots Anaheim managed to put up on the eventual league’s best defense.

Why not Hammarberg?

Detractors of Hammarberg can easily point to a number of stats that are low for an MVP, and sometimes even below average. His goal differential and shot differential when he’s on the ice are near zero, which pales in comparison to some of the other point scorers this season. For a defensive focused line designed to match and stop the league’s top lines, giving up a goal every 20 minutes you’re on the ice is less than ideal. Others will point to his assist total and say he’s propped up by getting to share time on the man advantage with volume shooter and goal scorer Ethan Price.

Why you’re picking Rikard Hammarberg for MVP

You think that value can’t be determined from numbers alone and that the ability for Hammarberg to log solid shorthanded minutes (and occasionally score down a man), consistently match his rookies up against top lines, and elevate his teammates ability to score both at even strength and on the power play demonstrates a well rounded player that is always valuable to his team. Every team would love someone that can create, and Hammarberg might be the best at it.

***Chevy*** · 07-07-2020, 01:26 PM

BDonini · 07-07-2020, 04:17 PM

Awesome article. Hammy was huge for us this season, elevated a rookie linemate to top in league rookie scoring, had the 2nd best DGR for all forwards while still being a top 5 scorer, and completely turned around our PP after being put on it. Definitely worth a look as MVP.

***hockeyiscool*** · 07-08-2020, 12:05 AM

This article is good!

Navigation

Extra Menu

About us