Looking at the Tampa Bay Lightning start of season transition microstats with zone entries and zone exitsit’s fair to say the team has work to do. Before the season, fans knew that this Lightning team would be very different from previous seasons. With a record of 7-6-1, they will look to stand out from the middle of the pack in the standings as the season progresses.

Related: Love at first sight: McDonagh, Cooper, Gretzky and more

Now that I’ve covered zone entries and exits, what about another under-covered area of ​​hockey? Passing statistics are limited to assists in the public sphere and the NHL does not provide any additional data. Here’s a look at how the Lightning have fared in passing stats this season.

Background of the microstats tracking project

I plan to manually track the Lightning microstats throughout the 2024-25 season. This dataset will include data points such as passes, zone entries and additional statistics that the NHL does not cover. I’ll continue to share my findings throughout the season, so stay tuned for updates.

Success is an undervalued area of ​​analysis for a variety of reasons. To begin with, shots that result directly from a passing play have a higher conversion rate against goalkeepers due to the movement of the goalkeeper before the shot. Additionally, passes behind the goal line and across the crease also increase the chances of scoring. I’ve covered four full five-on-five games for the Lightning this season (October 11, October 15, October 19, October 22). With that, who was the most effective in getting out of the zone in 2024-25?

Analysis of success: global team

When analyzing passing statistics, players who make the last pass before a shot on goal provide the greatest passing value to their teammates. Their ability to use time and space to find teammates to get the best shot on net is not covered enough in the NHL. Surprisingly, Brayden Point leads the team in primary shooting assists this season with seven, followed by Victor Hedman and Conor Geekie with five.

The Lightning need to move the puck into the zone more frequently before their shot attempts to put the defense and goaltender out of position. What are the different passing styles to generate these scoring chances?

Success Analysis: Spotlight on Individuals

There are two common passing archetypes in the NHL. As I mentioned in the article on zone entriesno two players generate offense the same way. The two different styles are a quality over quantity approach and a possession-oriented passing style.

Quality over quantity

Players who seek quality over quantity with their passes tend to play with more risk, throwing cross-field and goal-line passes, even if there is a chance they will be caught. These players look to find that high-danger play, using the entire offensive zone to take out the goalie before the shot. Players like Nikita Koucherov and Jake Guentzel have perfected this skill and can execute no-look passing plays behind the net. Additionally, they can also fool the entire ice and turn a shot attempt into a dangerous cross-ice pass. Kucherov and Guentzel are tied for first on the team with five high-danger passes (passes to the slot plus cross-court passes plus goal-line passes).

Possession factors

On the other hand, some players will adopt a less risky style and control the perimeter of the offensive zone, relying on activating their defenders at the blue line for distance shot attempts. These players generally have solid possession metrics like Corsi for Percentage (CF%). Most of the time, the bottom six forwards will play this low-risk perimeter game while the elite offensive talents exploit defenses with more risky passing plays. These possession drivers will use point passes and center lane advances to generate scoring chances. Nick Paul, Anthony Cirelli and Mitchell Chaffee are the Lightning’s perimeter passers, driving possession in the offensive zone.

Tampa Bay needs more passing games before shots

While all of this information is essential, it is important to note that the sample size remains small. The final dataset will contain approximately five times as many previously tracked games, and a larger sample size will allow us to draw more precise conclusions about players. Still, the Lightning need to generate more shot attempts directly from multi-pass plays. This strategy will put the opposing defense and the goalkeeper out of position. Lightning face the powerful Winnipeg Jets on home ice Thursday evening (November 14) at Amalie Arena.