Follow me on twitter
When you think of the name Brooks Orpik you think of simple, tough, hardnosed hockey. You think of a guy who sells out for his team and somebody that carries weight within the locker room setting. You also think of him as the kind of physical presence that was built for playoff style hockey as the unheralded d man who plays the tough minutes and goes about his business.
However, playing those physical tough minutes have their consequences, namely wear and tear on the body. Over the past few seasons Orpik has been on the wrong end of a couple hernia injures, one for each side. These injuries have limited his ability to train during the offseason (
as discussed in detail by Hockey Hurt’s Cameron Walsh ).
Over the past few seasons a popular opinion amongst those who follow the Penguins is that Orpik’s play has regressed from when he first signed his contract extension in 2009. The hernia injuries and aging process could possibly explain part of that perception, but is it the whole story? What do the numbers say about the evolution of Brooks Orpik as a hockey player?
Below is a chart that shows a year by year breakdown of Orpik’s possession stats, the competition he plays against, and his offensive zone starting percentage. No stat by itself can tell the whole story, that includes puck possession (Corsi). To fully understand how a player is performing you need to take into consideration how that player is being used. By utilizing those three stats together I believe you can get a clearer picture of how a player is being used by his coach. Also important is how Orpik ranked in each category in relation to his teammates. You can find his team ranking in parentheses.
All stats included players who played in at least 20 games for the Penguins in each specific season (including forwards).
Starting way back during the Penguins two Stanley Cup Final years I notice that Orpik’s quality of competition is not amongst the hardest on the Penguins. Orpik, as mentioned above, has the perception as a shut down guy, this is clearly not the case during the Cup years. One of the biggest reasons for this is that Scuderi and Gill provided those shutdown minutes. During this time period Mark Eaton also chipped in with playing against the tougher competition. This allowed Orpik to be freed up and not assume the lion’s share of the defensive assignments.
Orpik’s offensive zone starting percentage also does not line up as being in a prototypical shutdown role. This indicates that Therrien/Bylsma were using Orpik more as a two way defenseman than they were a true shutdown defenseman.
What is surprising to me is that Orpik’s possession stats are below average during the Cup years even though he is not playing in a shutdown role.
As we look at the 2009-2010 season you can clearly see that the departure of Scuderi and Gill have had a direct impact on Orpik’s role. His quality of competition rank amongst the Penguins has significantly increased. This could be considered the first season in which the coaching staff started to trust Orpik with the tougher assignments (or had to by default). Orpik would still be considered a two way defenseman based on his offensive zone starts but clearly his minutes increased in difficulty. The reason for Orpik’s offensive zone start usage can be directly traced to playing with Sergei Gonchar and Dan Bylsma’s preference of giving Gonchar some offensive opportunities.
When Orpik was given more defensive responsibility in 2009-2010 he was able to take the responsibility in stride and have a very successful season. His Corsi rating was amongst the best of his career and playing with Gonchar allowed him some advantageous offensive zone starts.
The 2010-2011 season is when Orpik’s role significantly changes. With Gonchar, Scuderi, and Gill all removed from the Penguins roster, coach Dan Bylsma elected to shift Orpik’s role from a two way defenseman to strictly a shutdown defenseman. Orpik’s quality of competition is now amongst the toughest on the Penguins and his offensive zone starts have plummeted. Orpik’s Corsi ranking amongst fellow Penguins players is also extremely low. This is no surprise given the significant adjustment in how the coaching staff has elected to use Orpik.
In 2011-2012 the coaching staff continues to utilize Orpik in the same fashion that they did in 2010-2011. Orpik continues to play against the toughest competition and receive a low proportion of offensive zone starts. While Orpik’s Corsi rating is still ranked in the bottom third of Penguin players, it is significantly on the positive side unlike the previous year.
In 2012-2013 Orpik’s shutdown role has continued. While he is ranked 7th overall amongst the Penguins in quality of competition, only one of the 6 players ranked above him was a defenseman (Eaton who was surprisingly ranked #1). Orpik’s Corsi was the lowest it has been during this particular sample size. Something to take into consideration with the 2012-2013 season is that it was only a half season. Possession stats are most useful when the sample size is larger. That said, he was still amongst the lowest on the Penguins last season in that regard.
The biggest thing that I have taken away from looking at Orpik’s numbers the past 6 seasons is that injuries have not been the #1 factor in seeing a change in his play (not that injuries have not had an impact, they have), it has been his usage by the coaching staff. In Orpik’s last 3 seasons he has been used in a much different manner than the prior 3 seasons. It was during the first 3 seasons of the chart where I think a lot of the perceptions of Brooks Orpik as a player were developed.
When fans were trying to assess Orpik’s quality of play during 2010-2013 I believe that they were using the standard that was set in 2007-2010. I was guilty of this as well. Now we can see that the last 6 seasons have been a tale of two significantly different narratives.
So what can we expect from Orpik in the 2013-2014 season? I believe that with Scuderi’s return to the Penguins Orpik will be not be leaned on as heavily to provide the shutdown minutes he has assumed the last 3 years. Orpik’s role will be more similar to the one he had during the Penguins Cup years in 2008 and 2009, which is a good thing.
The players that make up the Penguins top 4 defense unit are now all capable of handling tough defensive assignments, unlike last season. By having the ability to use 4 defenseman in tougher minutes, Bylsma will be able to spread that burden as opposed to overloading a single player IE: Orpik 2010-2013. With this newfound quality depth it opens up a great opportunity for a player like Simon Despres. Despres can flourish without the burden of playing tough minutes. Despres’ puck skills and offensive ability will be able to shine with Bylsma’s ability to provide him and his partner advantageous matchups. Instead of being upset that Despres will most likely not receive top 4 minutes in 2013-2014 (barring injury), I am excited that he can crush his role as the #5 guy.
While Matt Niskanen’s name has been the obvious one to throw around in trade discussion, Orpik’s name has also surfaced as a potential player that could be moved to create cap space.
Given that the Penguins now have a rock solid top 4 defense unit I would not consider trading Orpik at this point in time. Orpik’s value on the Penguins entering a potential playoff run greatly outweighs any potential return the Penguins would get. The Penguins do not need future pieces; they are in it to win it now.
There is more value in keeping and letting him walk for nothing, than to trade him and get unneeded parts. I say unneeded parts because any team looking to acquire Orpik would also be in playoff contention and would not want to sacrifice important parts of their current roster. They would most likely be trading picks/prospects, something that does not help a Penguins team in a win now mode.
Orpik’s future with the Penguins after the 2013-2014 season remains cloudy. The biggest factor will be how the defense prospects develop during this upcoming season. If Simon Despres shows signs he can handle top 4 minutes and Scott Harrington shows he can handle the professional game down in WB/S, 2013-2014 could be Orpik’s last year in Pittsburgh.
It will not be an easy decision for Ray Shero. There is definitely risk with extending Orpik, regardless of his quality of play. Extending Orpik would guarantee that 3 out of the top 4 defensemen would all be in their mid to upper thirties. That would definitely not be an ideal situation given the status of the Penguins prospect pool at the defense position.
For now the Penguins will focus on the 2013-2014 season and find themselves content with their depth and experience at the defensive position. Decisions about the future as it pertains to the defense corp. will not have to be made until the season reaches its conclusion.
When it is finally time to make a decision on Orpik, I think it is important for Shero to look at how Bylsma intends on using him moving forward. Orpik has shown he can play in a two way role as well as a shutdown role. Shero/Bylsma will have to define the roles that the Penguins need moving forward at the defense position and if Orpik fits that mold.
One thing is for sure, the Penguins have some flexibility with how they can use Orpik in the 2013-2014 season with the addition of Scuderi, and that is a great thing if they want to reach the Cup Final again.
Thanks for reading!
Follow me on twitter
Pittsburgh Penguins Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»