Stars' Tyler Seguin struggles to score in the playoffs for second straight year
Dallas Stars forward Tyler Seguin had a tremendous inaugural campaign in Texas, leading a talented young Stars team in scoring and logging major minutes as Dallas qualified for the Stanley Cup playoffs. It marked the first time Dallas had played postseason hockey since 2008.
On Sunday, Seguin's season came to an end with the Stars falling in six games to the Anaheim Ducks. In Dallas' opening round Stanley Cup playoff series, Seguin - who scored 37 goals in the regular season - only managed a single goal. It was the second straight season that Seguin has struggled to produce offense in the playoffs, something Boston based commentators were all too happy to note on Monday:
Sollid step forward for Seguin in '13-'14, though fell back in playoffs (6g, 1-2--3). Last 2 Cup seasons, 28 games, 2 goals.
— Kevin Paul Dupont (@GlobeKPD) April 28, 2014
Despite Seguin's overall lack of goals, he was phenomenally dangerous throughout the series. Dallas outscored the Ducks at even-strength with Seguin on the ice in their opening round series, and he led all Stars skater in shot attempt differential.
As for Seguin's two year goal-scoring dry spell in the postseason, it appears to be more a matter of luck than anything else. While Seguin has gone from scoring .41 goals per game in the regular season to .07 goals per game in the playoffs over the past two seasons (a dramatic fall off), his volume falls off much less sharply (3.4 shots per playoff game, from 3.6 shots per game in the regular season). The devil, rather, is in the percentages:
| Tyler Seguin 2013-14 | GP | G | SH% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular Season | 128 | 53 | 2.1 |
| Playoffs | 28 | 2 | 11.6 |
Occasionally a true-talent 11 percent shooter will capitalize on a paltry 2.1 percent of shots taken over a 28 game sample. That's just variance and the nature of a sport where as much as 85 percent of shooting percentage has more to do with luck, than talent.
Like when Jonathan Toews went 20 games with only one goal scored in the postseason last year, the take away from Seguin's opening round performance should be the extent to which the 22-year-old center dominated play against the top-end of the Ducks roster.
For what it's worth Seguin doesn't seem to be sweating it. "I am very proud of our guys," Seguin told Stars.nhl.com's Mark Stepneski on Sunday. "I thought we competed so hard this season. We had lots of ups and downs this season. We’re a young team, we’ve got something to build on." That something to build on by the way? Hard to do better than a bluechip, 22-year-old, top-line center.