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Comparing the 2013 Pittsburgh Penguins to its Stanley Cup predecessors
The Pittsburgh Penguins have appeared in a total of four Stanley Cup Finals, winning three championships.
Right now, the team is halfway home to another Cup victory, with a series against Boston on tap sometime between now and the winter solstice.
Since the third round isn’t expected to commence until the weekend, I thought it might be a good time to look back at history and compare how this current Penguins squad measures up to the first four Cup teams.
Through the first two series, the Pens have scored 47 goals in 11 games, good for a 4.27 goals/game average.
Opponents have totaled 28 goals, averaging 2.55 goals/game.
That gives Pittsburgh a plus-19 goal differential.
By comparison, here’s a look at how the Pens’ four Cup team fared.
1990-91
Plus-27 goal differential
3.96 goals for
2.83 goals against
1991-92
Plus-20 goal differential
3.95 goals for
3.00 goals against
2007-08
Plus-18 goal differential
3.05 goals for
2.15 goals against
2008-09
Plus-15 goal differential
3.29 goals for
2.67 goals against
2013
Plus-19 goal differential
4.27 goals for
2.55 goals against
1990-1991, Pens vs. Minnesota North Stars
Number of Games in Series – Goals For – Goals Against
Round 1: 7 games – 21 goals for – 21 goals against
Round 2: 5 games – 19 goals for -- 13 goals against
Round 3: 6 games – 27 goals for – 18 goals against
Stanley Cup Finals: 6 games – 28 goals for – 16 goals against
24 games – 95 goals for – 68 goals against
The Penguins won their first Stanley Cup in franchise history with a plus-27 goal differential. They averaged 3.96 goals/game while holding opponents to 2.83 goals/game.
1991-1992, Pens vs. Chicago Blackhawks
Number of Games in Series – Goals For – Goals Against
7 games – 25 goals for – 27 goals against
6 games – 24 goals for – 19 goals against
4 games – 19 goals for – 7 goals against
4 games – 15 goals for – 10 goals against
21 games – 83 goals for – 63 goals against
The second Cup team compiled a plus-20 goal differential. They averaged 3.95 goals/game while limiting foes to 3.00 goals/game.
2007-2008, Pens vs. Detroit Red Wings
Number of Games in Series – Goals For – Goals Against
4 games – 16 goals for – 5 goals against
5 games – 15 goals for – 12 goals against
5 games – 20 goals for – 9 goals against
6 games – 10 goals for – 17 goals against
20 games – 61 goals for – 43 goals against
This team fell short of the Stanley Cup but finished with a plus-18 goal differential. The Pens averaged 3.05 goals/game and surrendered 2.15 goals/game.
2008-09, Pens vs. Detroit Red Wings
Number of Games in Series – Goals For – Goals Against
6 games – 18 goals for – 16 goals against
7 games – 27 goals for – 22 goals against
4 games – 20 goals for – 9 goals against
7 games – 14 goals for – 17 goals against
24 games – 79 goals for – 64 goals against
The Pens compiled a plus-15 goal differential on their way to a third Stanley Cup. They averaged 3.29 goals/ game while holding foes to 2.67 goals/game. Pittsburgh was outscored by Detroit for the second straight time in the Finals (17 to 14), but came away with the victory.
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After two series, the 2013 Penguins have a plus-19 goal differential. The other four Penguins Cup teams, in chronological order, held the following advantages after their first two rounds: plus-6 (90-91), plus-3 (91-92), plus-14 (07-08) and plus-7 (08-09).
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What do all of these numbers numbers mean?
Well, for starters, scoring came a lot easier in the early 1990s than it did in the current era.
With Pittsburgh averaging 4.27 goals/game right now, it’s better to compare that number with the 07-08 and 08-09 teams, which averaged 3.05 goals/game and 3.29 goals/game, respectively, than it is to compare with 90-91 (3.96 goals/game) and 91-92 (3.95).
The fact that the current Penguins are averaging more goals and have a bigger goal differential than any of their four Stanley Cup teams show just how well the team has begun its run.
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I’ll review advanced hockey statistics every so often, mostly when I’m bored or looking for a hockey story.
Hockey metrics haven’t really taken off like they have in baseball. Whether that’s due to the veracity of numbers like Corsi or Fenwick, I’m not sure.
In any case, the very first number that popped up when I did a playoff search for On-Ice Corsi revealed some scary 5-on-5 numbers concerning the Boston Bruins and the Pittsburgh Penguins.
On-Ice Corsi is defined as On-Ice Shot Differential (goals + saves + missed shots + blocks). This is expressed as a rate stat per 60 minutes.
What I saw was a frightening scenario for the Pens. You can click
here if you also want to be frightened.
Boston’s Brad Marchand holds the seventh-best Corsi rating in the playoffs with a 33.62 mark. James Neal checks in with Pittsburgh’s best numbers – he has a 20.49 rating.
Here’s the scary part: The Bruins have 17 skaters rated higher than the Pens’ second-best player, Evgeni Malkin. Malkin has a 6.02 rating.
Cause for concern? A skewed look at the numbers?
At 5-on-4 strength, Pittsburgh outnumbers Boston, 16 skaters to six, from a top-down perspective of On-Ice Corsi, so the sides even out a bit. You can click
here for those numbers.
*****
Treasure Life!
JT
Pittsburgh Penguins Blogger • 
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