Another One for the Pile

[der meister 3,247]

               "Goddammit!"

              

               Even from the stands, I can hear Toronto Legion defenseman Ryuji Sakamoto's distinctive voice, immediately followed up by the sound of fiberglass striking metal. I sigh, wondering if this marks double digits for broken sticks since the beginning of training camp for the second-year blueliner. Three games into the season finds the Legion with an 0-3 record and an absolutely anemic offense, scoring only 4 goals so far. Interestingly, from a defensive point of view, the Legion are surprisingly solid, allowing 9 goals, for an average of 3 per game. While it's extremely early in the year, the best goals against in the conference is shared by New York and Vancouver at 2 goals against per game. The worst is Chicago, who has allowed a whopping 12 goals in just 2 contests.

 

               I hear another smash of fiberglass on metal and can easily visualize Sakamoto beating the stuffing out of one of the garbage cans here at the practice rink. I can certainly understand the frustration over lack of team success, but for a defensive defenseman like Sakamoto, I once again feel like he's setting unrealistic expectations for his own individual performance. Sakamoto is one of a handful of players tied for second in the league in blocked shots, with 8, just one behind the league leaders. He's also just one behind the league leader in hits, averaging 4 body checks per game. Again, I stress the small sample size here, but averaging 2.67 blocks and 4 hits per game are both excellent numbers. For the sake of comparison, as a rookie Sakamoto averaged 1.42 blocks and 2.2 hits per game. Even offensively, Sakamoto's shots on goal per game is way up, at 3.67 this season compared to 2.14 last season.

              

               I also know that those statistics mean very little to the young man from Japan.

              

               As a reporter, I can try to remind him of his improvements in analytics, of his quite literal willingness to throw himself in front of a speeding puck for the benefit of his team, of his lead-by-example style. But for him, I know that every goal against when he's on the ice burns with the rage of a thousand suns. Even when he's on the ice for a Legion goal, the level of his joy does not match the intense anger of a goal against. Sakamoto is the most purely defensive-oriented player I've ever been embedded with, and he lives and dies with each shot against his netminder, figuratively speaking.

              

               For the sake of the garbage cans at the practice rink, I hope the Legion can find some offense soon. Sakamoto has but a single assist this season as the team's top defender. Goaltender Oskar Lindbergh is posting very respectable numbers of a .924 save percentage and a 2.72 goals against average. Defenseman Harry Hagel is one of the small handful of players who is tied with 9 blocked shots. There are positives for the team, but until the relatively young offense finds its way, whether it's on the backs of veterans like Matty Fire and Kyle Peace, or rookies Tyler Busser and Cole Caufield Jr, the Legion are going to be struggling to climb the standings.

[diacope 1,696]

Thankfully I have my headphones to block out the bashing noises xD

 

*pats Sakomoto's back*