Zdeno Chara is 44 years old — and he has often shown his age on the ice for the Islanders.
The advanced stats tell an alarming tale. Chara’s on-ice Corsi of 36 percent is the worst of any defenseman on the team, per Money Puck. So is his 27.1 on-ice expected goals percentage — with the Islanders scoring an expected 27.1 percent fewer goals fewer with him on the ice, also per Money Puck. According to Natural Stat Trick, the Islanders are generating just 33.33 percent of high-danger scoring chances when Chara is out there.
The Islanders traded Nick Leddy, with one year and a $5.5 million cap hit left on his deal, to the Red Wings in July, getting a second-round pick, Richard Panik and cap relief in return. To fill his spot on the blue line, they signed Chara to a one-year, 35-plus contract that carries a $750,000 cap hit.
It was a necessary move — the Islanders didn’t have the space to keep everyone from last year’s team that went to Game 7 of the NHL semifinals. But through seven games, over which the Islanders have gone 3-2-2, the downgrade has been evident.
“Really the change is Nick Leddy and Chara,” Islanders coach Barry Trotz said. “They’re absolutely the total opposites as players. … So that’s part of a little bit of the salary cap world that we’ve had to deal with.”
To be fair, Trotz doesn’t expect Chara to create offense.
“What we’re looking for from Z is, can he defend in your own end and can he kill penalties for the most part?” Trotz said. “I think he’s done a pretty decent job. I’m not looking for any offense or anything there. So I think he’s done fine.”
Leddy had 29 assists from the blue line last season and could quarterback the Islanders’ power play. In Detroit, he has played up top on the first unit and partnered with rookie Mortiz Seider, who has been impressive early on.
“There’s no one that skates like Nick Leddy on our defense at all,” Trotz said. “He’s one of those elite skaters.”
Scott Mayfield, Leddy’s partner for most of last season, agreed.
“When you lose a guy like Ledds that played so long and has a very special skill set with the way he can skate, it’s hard to fill that role,” Mayfield said. “A lot of things change in that role. So far, there’s definitely stuff we can clean up in the D zone. Cleaner breakouts, just better reads in terms of finding guys and getting the puck up to our forwards.”
The Islanders have shaken up their defensive pairings with Chara in the lineup, breaking up the Ryan Pulock-Adam Pelech pair to partner Pelech with Mayfield and Pulock with Chara.
Among defensive pairings with more than 50 minutes, Chara and Pulock have the worst expected goals percentage in the NHL at 26.8, per Money Puck, and are giving up 51.04 unblocked shots per 60 minutes.
That may in part be a product of how Trotz wants to utilize Chara. By the two metrics Trotz named — defending in his own end and killing penalties — things are less alarming when you look at what counts: goals allowed. The Islanders haven’t given up a shorthanded goal with Chara on ice. At even strength, they’ve given up one in three games.
“I think just like any player, there’s been an adjustment period,” Trotz said. “You look at stuff, I think he started off a little bit not great, but I think with his last number of games, I think he’s been pretty good.”
It was clear coming in that an adjustment would be needed. Leddy’s strength is his skating. Chara, at 6-foot-9 and 44 years old, was never going to be that kind of skater.
“We just have to adjust to the players that we have,” Trotz said. “We’re big on the back end, maybe not as quick as we were. And so we’ve gotta come up with ways to win hockey games with the group that we have.
“That won’t change with the salary cap era.”