Puckstopshere Kukla's Korner
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Dan Girardi’s Corsi
Dan Girardi of the New York Rangers has the worst Corsi in the NHL so far this season. He is at -143, which is only one point worse than Nick Leddy of the New York Islanders. Last year he also had the worst Corsi. Girardi is consistently a bad player by puck possession metrics. No other player has been worse when measured by attempted shots while the player is on the ice. To make matters worse, Girardi is playing on a playoff calibre team and not one of the worst teams in the league.
Girardi is the number four player on the Rangers by ice time. This makes him a second line defenceman with the team. The fact that the Rangers are able to be a playoff team despite a lack of defensive depth that allows Dan Girardi to play regularly is quite a feat. The Rangers are not a particularly good puck possession team. The Rangers have the highest 5 on 5 shooting percentage in the NHL. This is evidence that they may be overachieving. The fact that they continue to play a poor puck possession player in Dan Girardi on their defence is a bad sign. Girardi has a $5.5 million salary cap hit until 2020. The Rangers are likely stuck with him for a while if they do not buy him out. He hasn't been able to play a frontline position anymore and he is continuing to struggle as he falls further down in their depth chart.