CBJ of the Day: Brandon Saad

By William Espy

One June 30, 2015 the Columbus Blue Jackets shocked, and also sent a message to the world. The Chicago Blackhawks were having massive salary cap issues as was to be expected when the Kane and Toews contracts kicked in. Toews’ linemate Brandon Saad was a restricted free agent, and as a 22 year old with a pair of Stanley Cups in his resume it was inevitable that some team with a bunch of cap space would give him an offer sheet. Instead, GM Stan Bowman made an executive decision that they must trade him since negotiations were seemingly going nowhere.

Cue Jarmo Kekalainen. Kekalainen had shown that he was willing to make a big move if it was going to improve the team before, specifically the Hartnell deal. However, he had never made what could be considered a “blockbuster” trade. That’s probably part of the reason why when the news broke that the Blue Jackets had acquired Brandon Saad, no one saw it coming in the slightest.

After Saad was traded, many Blackhawks fans said that his success was only credited to Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa. However, if you look at his HERO chart, which details his impact on his teammates as well as individual production since the 2012-2013 season, this does not appear to be true at all. 

Let’s break down the chart one by one:

His time on ice per game is equivalent to that of a medium to high end second liner, Brendan Gallagher for example.

His individual production is close to that of Alexander Steen of the St. Louis Blues.

In Goals per 60 minutes Steen has a rating of 360.0, while Saad has a rating of 340.0

Assists per 60 minutes, Steen has a rating of 317.0 and Saad’s rating of 353.0 blows Steen out of the water.

His impact on teammate’s Corsi is very similar, but higher, to that of Coyotes captain Shane Doan.

And finally, his impact on linemates’ goals in offensive categories is very similar to that of Hurricanes captain Eric Staal and defensively it is similar to Alex Burrows of the Vancouver Canucks.

All of those players are very good company to be in and these stats mixed with Saad’s power and speed can make him a premier power forward in the NHL. His one issue may be getting used to having higher defensive responsibilities now that he no longer has Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa beside him.

STATUS: UNTOUCHABLE

From the moment he arrived in Columbus, Brandon Saad became a core player and is a very important part of the future.