The “Making The Grade” series has been pretty interesting so far. It’s been pretty entertaining to not only write, but also see what the other writers think about certain players. Tonight, I talk about arguably the most debated Oiler bottom-six forward, Luke Gazdic.
The tough guy, claimed off waivers from Dallas at the end of camp, has become a fan favorite in some circles, and a public enemy in others. Let’s put the biases aside and see where Luke Gazdic really stands. What mark does the hard-hitting tough guy get for his first term in Eakins’ class room?
Offensive:
Look, Luke Gazdic has never, and will never, be an offensive player at the professional level. He wasn’t an offensive guy in the AHL, and he certainly won’t be in the NHL. Gazdic has one goal, which he scored on opening night in his first shift, and one assist for just two points through 22 games on the season.
Those are numbers that the average/below-average NHL fighter usually puts up, so no major surprise in the low point and goal totals, its to be expected. What IS alarming is the amount of chances given up by this line as a whole. Gazdic, Acton and Jesse Joensuu have been getting killed as a line, and are getting greatly out-chanced. They give up far too many shots and quality scoring chances against.
As a result, Gazdic doesn’t chip in on any offensive chances. He gets one maybe every three or four games, and that is a problem. The numbers not being there is one thing, but the chances not being there is a totally different thing. It isn’t just advanced stats either, watch him closely, never creating any kind of offense or zone pressure. It’s a problem.
Overall offensive grade? 30, F.
Defensive:
Just about everything I mentioned above applies here. Gazdic spends nearly all his time in the defensive zone, and usually it is getting hammered with chances and shots against. That isn’t the formula that winning teams use. Like the guy or not, he struggles as a hockey player in terms of creating offense and preventing it.
Watching one of his shifts usually calls for a lot of close calls and saves from whoever is in net for Edmonton on that night. Nothing against Gazdic the guy, but Gazdic the player needs a lot of work.
In his defense, Gazdic has improved quite a bit since the start of the season. Things are still bad in terms of his defensive play, but aren’t as bad. That all being said, Luke Gazdic is a major liability defensively. The advanced stats, the eye test and the normal stats all suggest it. Gazdic is struggling and struggling badly defensively.
People always call for a tough guy, but this is the perfect reason why you need to be very careful what you wish for.
Overall defensive grade? 55, F.
Team Play:
Some of you will say I’ve been too hard on Luke, so here’s my nice part of the article. If there is one thing that Luke Gazdic does right, it’s be a team player. He is one of the only players willing to drop the gloves with ANYONE for his teammates. He’s fought in weight-classes ahead of him, and took on guys even when he didn’t have to. I’ll always respect him for that, he’s tough and willing to drop the gloves to protect his team.
He might be a liability in terms of tangible hockey stats, but he’s physical and will stand up for his teammates, so he does a good job in terms of team play.
That being said, he doesn’t go above and beyond his call of duty and fills the role he was brought in for, so he doesn’t get too many brownie points. All things considered, he’s the norm in terms of NHL tough guys when it comes to team play.
Overall team play grade? 75, C.
Overall Grade: 53, F.
Luke Gazdic seems like a good guy and seems like someone who is willing to do what is asked of him. That said, there aren’t points awarded for being a good guy and trying to fill a role. This is a results oriented business and right now, to be quite frank, Luke Gazdic simply isn’t putting forth the results needed.
Look anywhere you want, whether you are an advanced stats person, someone who uses the eye test, or someone that uses a different measurement scale, it doesn’t matter. Luke Gazdic simply isn’t a very good hockey player right now. He isn’t creating offense and isn’t preventing the other team from doing so.
His only role is to fight and be physical on this team, and quite frankly that’s a waste of a roster spot. I respect his tough-guy mentality, but overall Luke Gazdic will need to be much better in order to keep an NHL roster spot in Edmonton. He needs to turn things around badly. Watch some Shawn Thornton tape Luke, it will help.
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