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Oilers Report Card: #77 Oscar Klefbom |
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Over the past five years, Oscar Klefbom has arguably been the Oilers most important piece on the backend and their best option in facing against the oppositions top players. This season provided an interesting look at the areas where Klefbom excels and where he may struggle more than expected.
OSCAR KLEFBOM
62GP: 5-29-34
Darnell Nurse and Ethan Bear may have averaged more at 5 on 5 for the Oilers, but Oscar Klefbom was the true work horse this season. Klefbom played the most minutes of any player on the PK (averaging 2:29) while also being the top used defenseman on the powerplay (averaging 3:37). In total, Klefbom was averaging over 2 minutes more a game than any other player on the Edmonton roster.
From 2015/2016 through to the end of the 2018/2019 season Klefbom, always hovered around 50% in terms of puck possession and a positive influence in terms of xGF%. This year saw a dip across the board. The Larsson and Klefbom pairing were the Oilers weakest this season in at 5 on 5.
Something else strange happened with Klefbom this season; he started blocking far more shots than we have ever seen. In fact, it was Oscar Klefbom who led the league in blocked shots this season with 180, despite missing 11 games. The next highest player was David Savard of the Blue Jackets with 163. Last season Klefbom missed time with injury as well and played a near identical 61 games. In that year he was 92nd in blocked shots with 102.
Putting that all together, this season Klefbom spent far more time in his own end than the offensive end, was forced to block more shots as a result and gave up a fair amount of goals. From that perspective, it wasn't a great season for the defenseman.
In past seasons, this would be the point where I would say that it was Adam Larsson who held Klefbom back but that would not be true here and in fact the duo posted a stronger xGF% together than apart.
I remain convinced the best option for the Oilers moving forward is pairing Klefbom with Ethan Bear. In a small sample size of 111 minutes at 5 on 5, the duo out chanced and out scored the opposition.
Despite some of the defensive issues Klefbom faced, he remains an offensive threat and had he not been injured, we would likely have seen a new career high. Until Bear or eventually Bouchard gets the opportunity, Klefbom is the best option on the point on the PP and this season he registered 16 assists and 2 goals at 5 on 4.
Overall while there were good things that hapened for Klefbom offensively this season, I would argue this was his worst season since becoming a full time NHLer. At only 26 years old, no one should be thinking this is more than a blip for the young top defenseman. Nurse and Klefbom remain the future for the Oilers in the top four on the left hand side. Tippett needs to continue to look for ways to balance these two players and find the right right shot to pair with them.
FINAL GRADE: B-
Edmonton Oilers Blogger • 
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