Critics of the possession statistics that have made their way into the mainstream of hockey analysis are quick to point out that not every shot towards the net counts the same.
And of course, no one is saying that they do. However, if you want a game that encapsulates that, Wednesday’s Montreal Canadiens loss to the Colorado Avalanche is it.
Montreal dominated five-on-five possession. They had 65 shot attempts towards net against just 38 for Colorado. They outshot the Avalanche 32-24 in that same situation. But when it came to high danger scoring chances, Colorado led 12-4, and they did a great job at holding the lead they earned in the opening minute of the third period.