Despite a disastrous October, the Calgary Flames have been 5–2–2 in November. Better yet, Jonathan Huberdeau is suddenly on a three-game point streak. His grinding ascent back into being an impact player for the Flames has been gruelling months in the making, but it looks like it might finally be happening.
Since being benched against the Nashville Predators back on November 7, Huberdeau has been better, plain and simple. You have to give credit where it’s due, and for Huberdeau, it’s definitely due.
Huberdeau’s impact since being benched
Huberdeau’s nowhere near a 115-point player yet, but he’s definitely not playing a 55-point calibre right now either. He’s playing somewhere in between, and that’s a sign of good progress. You have to start somewhere, and for Huberdeau, his start might have been that third period two weeks ago when he had a whole lot of time to think.
The Flames have played six games since the benching that saw Huberdeau hanging his head in shame. Using data from NaturalStatTrick.com, here’s how Huberdeau has fared in those six games with 5v5, score- and venue-adjusted data.
| Game | CF% | GF% | xGF% | SCF% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CGY at TOR | 49.28 | 51.56 | 37.05 | 43.73 |
| CGY at OTT | 41.65 | – | 63.44 | 43.56 |
| CGY at MTL | 37.57 | – | 28.08 | 23.82 |
| VAN at CGY | 74.77 | 100 | 72.27 | 75.74 |
| NYI at CGY | 50.76 | 47.38 | 47.33 | 48.09 |
| CGY at SEA | 53.29 | 35.38 | 59.12 | 55.57 |
And here are his individual stats in all situations:
| Game | G | A1 | A2 | P | S | ixG | iCF | iSCF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CGY at TOR | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0.04 | 1 | 1 |
| CGY at OTT | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.24 | 2 | 2 |
| CGY at MTL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.08 | 1 | 1 |
| VAN at CGY | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0.47 | 8 | 4 |
| NYI at CGY | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 0.77 | 5 | 5 |
| CGY at SEA | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0.04 | 1 | 0 |
From this data, there are a couple of things that stand out for me. First and foremost, a sample size of six games isn’t indicative of anything, it’s just hopefully the right trend for Huberdeau—he’s not fully out of the woods yet.
Here are other observations that may be positive signs:
- While he’s had mixed results at 5v5 in terms of Corsi, expected goals, etc., there are still games where he’s genuinely having a great game both on the ice with his linemates and as an individual. His past three have been good to great in the Corsi front.
- Putting up five points in his last three games is huge for him. It’s proof that he can still do it and can be the big boost in confidence he’s desperately sought.
- He’s willing to shoot and has racked up a massive 14 shot attempts in his past three games, with eight coming against Vancouver. More importantly, many of the shots are scoring chances. He’s picking his shots and isn’t just throwing pucks on net for stat padding or blind chance.
- In his first game of the season, he posted an 0.89 ixG for. Since then, he’s his next two highest totals have come against Vancouver and New York in the two games above at 0.47 and 0.77 ixG, respectively.
Hoping Huberdeau can piece it all together
Again, it’s worth noting that these stats come as a marker of everything Huberdeau has done since being benched. The sample is small, but they’re his results nonetheless. As a player who’s been in a rut that’s spanned over a year, his recent play has been hopeful—both for him and the fans.
For better or for worse, the Flames will have Huberdeau with them even as they possibly rebuild. Unless they buy him out of course, but that’s not likely from the management perspective.
Having Huberdeau return to form can only mean good things for the franchise. Let’s hope this is the actual start of the real Huberdeau era.
