Brandon Saad is once again a Chicago Blackhawk.
That was a sentence that didn't seem likely in the short-term but in the ever changing NHL, it can happen in a moments notice.
The official trade breakdown has the Blue Jackets acquiring Artemi Panarin, Tyler Motte and a 2017 6th round pick. The Blackhawks acquire a Brandon Saad, Anton Forsberg and a 2018 5th round pick.
While the side pieces of the deal are intriguing, Panarin and Saad is the main course. Who wins in the short and long term? The numbers give us a better sense of what each brings to the table.
2
The amount of times that Panarin has put up 70 points in a season. It is an impressive accomplishment and one that doesn't happen in the NHL like it used to. 19 players this past season scored 70 plus points in the league. in 2015-16, only 17 players did it. It is a small fraternity of players that have done it. When you think of elite offense, Panarin immediately comes to mind.
3
The amount of points that Saad put up on the power play this past season. The difference between Panarin and Saad on the power play is stark.
Panarin was a staple on the first power play unit for the Blackhawks and saw constant ice time. It helps explain his 17 points scored on the man advantage.
Saad on the other hand played on the second unit and even then was used sparingly. His power play unit almost saw an equal amount of time starting in the defensive zone than in the offensive zone. Not necessarily conducive to putting up points on the man advantage.
Differences in usage may make this deal closer than anyone wants to admit.
15.3%
That is the shooting percentage for Panarin during his two-year career in the league. For nearly any other player in the league, you could state that it is an unsustainable percentage. As an elite goal scorer, it makes sense that Panarin scores that much but he does it playing with players like Patrick Kane. Kane is one of the best offensive wingers this generation has seen and generates great opportunities for anyone he plays with.
Comparatively, Saad has a career 11.8% shooting percentage. Those numbers have stayed consistent throughout his career with only a major difference in his first season with the Blue Jackets.
The Blue Jackets are hoping that the numbers for Panarin aren't just an aberration from playing with an elite forward.
6.4 and 6.8
The first number is Saad's Corsi For percentage relative to his teammates at even strength. The second number is Panarin's Corsi For percentage relative to his teammates at even strength.
Regardless of intangibles attached to each of the players, both play with the puck in the offensive zone and both teams do it more often with these two players on the ice. Both are going to exceed in their situations because they are great players that impact the game.
It has become cliche to call players "elite", but it is the best way to describe these two. They are two of the best young players in the game and determining a "winner" between the two teams is like picking between which yellow Lamborghini you want to drive.
Either way, you end up a winner.
