Ottawa Senators Bobby Ryan Looks Poised for 30 Goals
By Ian Smith
Bobby Ryan is a great player, but the Ottawa Senators have not gotten the type of production from him that he delivered in Anaheim since they acquired him.
There’s a great story on Todaysslapshot that examines Ryan’s chance to have a resurgent season in Ottawa under new coach Guy Boucher.
The Senators have numerous intriguing forwards capable of scoring at high rates. Even with their struggles as a team last season, the Senators ranked 9th in the NHL in goals per game.
Boucher certainly has formidable tools to work with. When he was the head coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning, his team always had unique offensive looks.
Boucher is known for employing a vigorous 1-3-1 forecheck to pressure the other team with the puck.
Marc Crawford also has experience running this, and he was hired to be Boucher’s associate coach. It’s a very aggressive system, meant to force turnovers and immediately transition with speed.
It can end up leaving the defense vulnerable if not effective, but generates some explosive offense if executed properly.
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The Senators have the right foundation in place to run this attack. They figure to be a high scoring team next season.
The schemes will work in Ryan’s favor to increase his goal scoring total, and also the player personnel will likely assist him in that endeavor.
Derick Brassard was acquired this offseason, and his passing skills will benefit Ryan when they’re on the ice together.
Ryan’s shot totals have generally dropped since his days in Anaheim, and if a playmaker like Brassard can give him opportunities, his goals are likely going to increase.
Ryan scored 22 goals last season on 183 shots. That’s a shooting percentage of 12.0%, which was an improvement over his 8.1% in 2014-2015, but still not quite his Anaheim levels.
During his Ducks’ tenure, he had a cumulative shooting percentage of 14.1%. With the Senators, that has fallen to 10.6%.
In 3 of Ryan’s 30 goal seasons in Anaheim, he fired off at least 369 total shots. In Ottawa, he has never been that trigger happy in even one season.
His 221 shots on goal in 2014-2015 would have been enough to crack that 30 goal plateau if he had finished at his Anaheim rates, but he shot at a career low shooting percentage.
Hypothetically, let’s say that Ryan gets his shots on goal closer to 250 next season. It’d be his highest total in Ottawa, but eclipsed by 2 seasons in Anaheim.
On 250 shots, let’s be conservative and say Ryan shoots at 12%. It wouldn’t even be his highest percentage in Ottawa, just what he shot last year.
That would be enough to get Ryan back to 30 goals. Of course, this is all dependent on staying healthy, but Brassard’s great passing skills will get Ryan more opportunities.
Next: Ottawa Senators Can Lean on Marc Crawford as an Associate Coach
These factors are really making a Ryan resurgence seem like a solid bet to make. An aggressive offensive scheme and a playmaker like Brassard alongside him seems like a great recipe for Ryan to put together his highest goal scoring season in Ottawa and get him back to that 30 goal level.