Casey Mittelstadt is one of the more polarizing players on the Buffalo Sabres. Some call him underrated, others, a draft bust.
Jacob D. Strozyk of The Hockey Writers penned an interesting piece earlier today depicting the three most underrated players on the Buffalo Sabres roster. Over a month ago, I wrote a similar article, listing Rasmus Asplund, Zemgus Girgensons, and Dylan Cozens.
Asplund for his lack of scoring, yet incredible defensive game. Girgensons for his physicality and decent face-off output, and Cozens because of his tenacity and leadership skills despite spotty production. But Strozyk listed three players I did not think of: Mattias Samuelsson, Vinnie Hinostroza, and Casey Mittelstadt.
I wrote a few recent pieces on Samuelsson, and I don’t see Hinostroza quite fitting into the team’s long-term plans. However, I have wondered what a completely healthy Casey Mittelstadt can do for the team. Plus, I still think he is the best man on the roster at center on the second line.
Casey Mittelstadt may ulimately be the most underrated player on the Buffalo Sabres roster.
Late last season, once Mittelstadt saw consistent time on the ice, he wasn’t as bad as you may think, evidenced by a Corsi For (CF%) that increased by 1.6% and a career-high Fenwick For (FF%) at even strength. He scored just 19 times last season, six goals, and 13 assists, yet 13 of those 19 points came between March 20th and April 29th, including four of his six goals.
Also in those last 20 games, he won 106 face-offs and lost 120, good for a 46.9% FOW%. While this seems meager, Mittelstadt won just 96 face-offs earlier in the season and lost 130, which sat at 42.5%, an improvement of nearly 4.5%.
Some of Mittelstadt’s stagnation could also come from dealing with Ralph Krueger for two seasons. And he’s not the only one who suffered through that horrendous stretch. Krueger’s ill-fitted style affected Kyle Okposo, Jeff Skinner, Tage Thompson, and Rasmus Dahlin, to name a few. Enter Don Granato and a healthy Mittelstadt, and things are at least trending north.
When you look at Mittelstadt’s late-season statistics, you can clearly see an improvement. No, they are not spectacular, but they definitely trended upward. So what is a completely healthy Casey Mittelstadt capable of? Maybe we will find out this season.
(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference)
Article Source: 3 Underrated Sabres Going Into 2022-23 by Jacob D. Strozyk