And then there’s the skilled side: Kadri is a fine shooter and playmaker. Add all the components together, and he’s one of the better lower-tier first-line centers in the league (currently playing behind an elite first line center in Auston Matthews).
During his breakout offensively during the 2016-17 campaign, he was lauded frequently for the improvements in his defensive game.
An ambitious analytics deep dive can prove fruitful in a discussion about the rapidly-changing definition of ‘defense’. For me, defense is orchestrating methods of getting the puck back. My three-pronged approach compartmentalizes each stage:
- Engaging the opposition
- Supporting with numbers to get the puck back
- Transitioning to offense
In the offensive zone, attacking teams without the puck are actively playing defense and an active forecheck produces defensive results if it successfully gets the puck back.