Maple Leafs Game Preview: Florida vs Toronto
By Tim Chiasson
Feb 15, 2015; Sunrise, FL, USA; Florida Panthers goalie Roberto Luongo (1) makes a save on a shot by St. Louis Blues left wing Alexander Steen (20) in the shootout at BB&T Center. The Blues won 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Robert Mayer-USA TODAY Sports
Analytics Report
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The Florida Panthers, dubbed the “Fancy Cats” by the analytics community, are a model for what an underwhelming roster can do when they play a good system of hockey.
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The Panthers play good possession hockey and have gotten results for it – they’re only four points out of a wildcard seed.
Shooting percentage has been the killer for Florida. With the inability to score goals they’ve had to rely on Roberto Luongo to pick up the slack – luckily for them he has been up to the task.
The Leafs continue to struggle in all areas. The shooting percentage is slowly rising again after a disastrous month of January but it’s too little to late for the Maple Leafs.
The greatest possession and puck luck in the world couldn’t save their season at this point. They’d have to go 22-2-1 in their remaining 25 games to even have a chance to make the playoffs.
Going with this years trend for Florida, if the Leafs can beat Luongo regularly the Panthers won’t be able to catch up.