Here's why Anthony Mantha may be a good fit to play with Backstrom and Ovechkin
Mantha hasn't really earned this opportunity, but he may bring a skill set that's helpful
Late last week, we got a look at what the Caps lines may initially look like under Spencer Carbery. One of the things that caught my eye is Anthony Mantha skating with Nick Backstrom and Alex Ovechkin. There are a lot of reasons, if this arrangement even lasts until the regular season starts, that this trio isn’t ideal. We’ll get into those more in a bit.
But, Mantha brings a skill to the table that Backstrom and Ovechkin badly need in a linemate: the Caps are much better at suppressing opponent shots against when Manta is on the ice compared to when he’s not on the ice.
Last season, 17 Caps forwards skated at least 140 minutes at 5v5. With Mantha on the ice, the Caps allowed 53.9 shot attempts against per 60 minutes of play, ranking third among that group. The Caps defensive play with Mantha on the ice holds up when looking at shot quality too, as he ranked fifth in expected goals against per 60 minutes.
It probably goes without saying that Ovechkin could benefit from playing with teammates who show some interest in playing defense, as no Caps forward had a higher expected goals against than Ovechin last season. In other words, Ovechkin was the Caps worst defensive forward (and by some metrics one of the worst defensive forwards in the league).
Playing with Backstrom hasn’t improved the Caps defense with Ovechkin on the ice. During the Peter Laviolette era, Ovi and Backstrom skated 386 minutes together at 5v5. In those minutes, the Caps allowed 8.6 more shot attempts against per 60 and 0.2 more expected goals against per 60 than when this duo wasn’t on the ice together.
As I said at the start though, there are reasons to think this trio isn’t made to be together. A few of those reasons:
Anthony Mantha was a healthy scratch last season and has generally been a disappointment since arriving in DC. Can we really expect him to handle top line minutes?
Nick Backstron’s hip may prevent him from being an effective NHL player moving forward.
As Ovi gets closer to Gretzky’s record, should we even care all that much about team defense (or performance)?
I think Dylan Strome is pretty easily the best fit to center Ovechkin.
But this Ovi-Backstrom-Mantha line is worth a look. For two aging veterans that have had success together before but have struggled together defensively in recent seasons, putting them with a solid defensive player like Mantha is worth a shot.
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