If we’re going to do Mike Green, then next should be his partner on the blue line, which brings us to…
Shaone Morrisonn
Theme: “The man who occupies the first place seldom plays the principal part.”
Hockey and “The Sorrows of Werther” probably don’t intersect much, but that quote from von Goethe does seem to offer a glimpse into the matter of pairs on the blue line and the complementary partnership of Mike Green and Shaone Morrisonn. Green is getting a lot of attention this week in his restricted free agency status, Morrisonn not as much, even though he – like Green – finds himself in the restricted free agency pool.
As for Morrisonn, one might wonder if Green would have had the breakout season he did without Morrisonn playing the patient, stay-at-home, let-Mikey-join-the-rush sort of defense that he did. Morrisonn’s ten-game splits will not look especially impressive…
…but his value isn’t going to be reflected in the usual offense-weighted statistics. In a curious way, one can see his value precisely in his offensive statistics. As with Green, it is useful to look at the “Hanlon” and “Boudreau” segments. Under Glen Hanlon, Morrisonn was 0-3-3, -10, paired mostly with Milan Jurcina. Morrisonn and Green were paired in Bruce Boudreau’s first game behind the Capitals’ bench, against Philadelphia on November 23rd, and the two were 1-1-2, +4, combined. Seems the coach was on to something.
Over the second half of the year, the two were a combined +28. Morrisonn, by himself, improved from a -10 in his “Hanlon” segment to +14 in his “Boudreau” segment.
Morrisonn seemed to rise to the occasion with respect to opponents, as well. Against the Atlantic Division, arguably the best and deepest of the divisions in the East last season, Morrisonn was on the plus side of the ledger against four of the five clubs – Pittsburgh being the exception. Against the other four clubs, Morrisonn was a combined +8 in 16 games. Extending that line of thought, Morrisonn was even or better in 41 of 55 games in his “Boudreau” segment for the year (only 11 for 21 in his “Hanlon” segment). Plus-minus always has a certain “chicken or the egg” air about it, but it remains that Morrisonn was more successful in his own game and as a partner to Green in those last 55 games he played for the season.
Morrisonn has been consistent in his three years with the Caps. Whether the Caps were finishing the year with 70 points, as they did in his first two years, or with 94 points and playoff spot, his statistical lines have been steady: 1-13-14, +7, in 2005-2006; 3-10-13, +3, in 2006-2007; and 1-9-10, +4, this past season. That kind of consistency, along with his attention to his stay-at-home role, doesn’t make for gaudy statistics. But perhaps it served as the basis for an important contribution to the success of the club this year.
However…Morrisonn’s one goal this year?
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