On Janne Kuokkkanen's sneaky good rookie campaign
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It’s crazy how much can change in a year (and a bit).
Just 14 months ago the New Jersey Devils traded pending UFA defenseman Sami Vatanen to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for Janne Kuokkanen and a conditional 4th round pick, which turned out to be a 3rd rounder.
That move was met with a lot of anger from the fanbase. Many were legitimately underwhelmed by the haul. While I didn’t agree – I really liked Kuokkanen’s puck skills, hockey sense, and productivity – I can see why, on the surface, people would be disappointed with a mid-round pick and a non-sure-fire prospect for a defender with that kind of output.
Fast forward a year and Vatanen rightfully found himself waived by a team with a bad defense core. He really, really, struggled.
Meanwhile, Kuokkanen has been arguably the most impressive rookie on a team overflowing with quality youngsters.
Kuokkanen is tied for the team-lead in 5v5 scoring despite playing fewer games than Yegor Sharangovich and Jack Hughes. He actually leads the way in terms of efficiency, recording 1.98 points per 60 minutes of play. That’s 1st line production.
For perspective, Claude Giroux, Elias Lindholm, Tyler Toffoli, Ryan O’Reilly, and Anze Kopitar are all averaging between 1.97 and 2.00 points per 60 minutes. I’d say that’s pretty good company for the rookie to be keeping.
He’s not just an empty calorie scorer. His underlyings are fairly impressive as well. The Devils’ share of the shot attempts, high-danger chances, expected goals, and actual goals are all higher with Kuokkanen on the ice.
Yes, playing with Jack Hughes definitely helps. But, again, Kuokkanen is the most efficient producer on the team right now. He’s pulling his weight.
While Kuokkanen hasn’t played a ton on the man advantage, he has also shown the ability to excel in that gamestate.
Kuokkanen has averaged 4.3 points per 60 on the power play. That puts him 3rd on the team behind Jesper Bratt and Pavel Zacha (who has been quite strong in non 5v5 game states).
His passing is the bread and butter, of course, but he’s also done a good job of creating chances in high-danger areas. Just Kyle Palmieri (the focal point of the power play) and Nico Hischier (17 games played) have generated expected goals at a higher rate.
Considering his success in essentially every situation, it should be no surprise Jack Hughes, Jesper Bratt, and goal scoring machine Miles Wood are the only Devils forwards with a higher GAR this season.
Kuokkanen’s been very good, and I just don’t think he’s gotten enough credit.
numbers via NaturalStatTrick.com and Evolving-Hockey.com
Todd, did you infer from the Murray interview that he has no interest in coming back?
Todd who do you think Devils lose in expansion draft? My money is on Bastian. Unless Butcher is left unprotected.