Claimed:Better 2016: Wingate or Reencarnacion?

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FOR MIST4KE CHRISTMAS DOUBLES

 

 

Better 2016: Hans Wingate or Edwin Reencarnacion?

 

I don't necessarily mean to steal of some @YEAH!stlemania's thunder with this article, but I might do so just a little bit; but I'll only be comparing two players, both of whom ended their careers after Season 50. These two players are obviously Hans Wingate and Edwin Reencarnacion, as you can tell by the title. I'll only be comparing their performances in 2016 (or, in other words, S47-S50).

 

My reason for striking this debate in particular is that, when YEAH! asked for opinions on which player had the best 2016, several people mentioned Hans Wingate. No one, however, mentioned Edwin Reencarnacion, who was recently inducted into the Hall of Fame alongside Wingate. There's no doubt that Wingate is a more household name, so I'm not surprised he came to find quicker than Reencarnacion. However, we're speaking strictly 2016, and some of Wingate's earlier success (S44 Continental Cup, S44 and S46 Shaw Trophies) factor into his overall notoriety. While Reencarnacion was no slouch during his first few seasons, his stats and accolades just don't stand up to those of a young Wingate. So ultimately I can understand why Wingate's name came up and Reencarnacion's didn't, but it doesn't necessarily mean that Wingate did have a better 2016. That's why I'm here to look at.

 

I'll start by looking at Wingate. Overall, throughout those four seasons, his regular season stats were pretty good. It's worth noting, however, that they were not the best. Greg Clegane was a better goalie than Wingate in just about every category. Wingate was second in wins (179), save percentage (0.926), goals against average (1.78), and shutouts (42). He was the second best despite a very poor (and not even just for his standards) Season 47 in which he had a 0.910 save percentage, which had him sixth out of seven user goalies. He bounced back from a poor start to the year in Season 48, eventually winning the Continental Cup and being named playoff MVP. Of course he was a member of the three-peat Toronto Legion, giving him three championships for the year. In his final season, he won the Scotty Campbell, Brett Slobodzian, and Aidan Shaw Trophies.

 

Hans Wingate (left) and Edwin Reenarnacion (right) won a cup together with the Toronto Legion in S50.

 

Now to Edwin Reencarnacion. Unlike Wingate, Reencarnacion's stats were not the second best at his position (among all skaters, really); rather, they were the best. From S47 to S50, Reencarnacion was the league's premier goal scorer, scoring 210 times. Additionally, he was first in power play goals (44), second in points (424), second in game-winning goals (47), and sixth in assists (214). What ultimately separates him from someone like Max Molholt (who won more championships) is that Reencarnacion was a physical player as well, racking up the seventh most hits (971). He also had the third highest face-off percentage. Reencarnacion's trophy cabinet is very comparable to that of Wingate's when looking at just 2016; he won two Continental Cups (S47, S50) and a Daisuke Kanou Trophy (S47). Like Wingate, he had an MVP season (S48) in which he was also the Most Outstanding Player. In that season, he won the Mike Szatkowski (Most Points), Kevin Brooks (Most Goals), and Scott Boulet (Top Two-Way Forward) Trophies. He had previously won another Kevin Brooks Trophy in S47 as well.

 

I think up to this point, everything that I've looked at suggests to me that Reencarnacion had a better 2016 than Hans Wingate. Wingate's edge in championships does make it close, but Reencarnacion was a better player when compared to his peers than Wingate was. Reenarnacion was also a more consistent player, while one of Wingate's four seasons was actually pretty bad. However, I haven't yet looked directly into their playoffs performances. While I don't plan on going to in depth on them because frankly, I've already spent more time on this than I would've liked, I will say that Wingate's numbers are, at quick glance, more impressive. Typically though, goalies do tend to put up better numbers in the playoffs. Ultimately I don't actually think either of the other two had a clear-cut better 2016, but I'd probably give Wingate a slight edge due to his post-season successes (not that Reencarnacion wasn't also successful in the playoffs).

Edited December 31, 2016 by Streetlite

[Jericho 917]

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