Working Stats

Whatever happens with the score tonight, Oilers fans will find a new stat to show they were the better team.

Tonight the Habs face the Oilers, and their army of stat-generating mathematicians.

I exaggerate, of course. Oilers fans can be very critical of their team. But it remains true that the Oilogosphere is the burning orb around which the new world of NHL statistics was born and now orbits.

We Habs fans are doing a relatively good job catching up, but are a relative Pluto compared to those who have been extolling the virtues of Dustin Penner for years.

If you want to have a different read for this game, and I've noticed other blogs like referring their game prep elsewhere, then having a good trawl through the Oilogosphere is as fun as any other trip you can take. They speak in a different language, sometimes. One where words like Fenwick and Zone starts flow off the tongue. But to any burgeoning stats fan, it's a good read.

Cult of Hockeey - sidebar especially (Dave Staples)
Irreverent Oiler Fans - archives now (Vic Ferrari)
The Copper and Blue (Derek Zona, Jonathan Willis, et al)
Lowetide
mc79 (Tyler Dellow, Colin Campbell whistleblower)
Battle of Alberta (Matt Fenwick, et al)
...


And for the Habs fans with tunnel vision like myself. Stick to the Habs with Olivier's numerical looks at the Habs:

En Attendant les Nordiques (Olivier)


Enjoy the game, and while Corsi may not be kind, let's hope the Habs win the most important statistical category (and least important for goalies...), the normalized win-loss differential.