There has been an ongoing push from everyone in the Buffalo Sabres community for head coach Don Granato to scratch Casey Mittelstadt.
The Buffalo Sabres have been making a habit of rotating forwards, scratching two per game, and giving them an opportunity to watch from the press box. These players have often seen time on the lower lines and have shown improvement following their return to the ice.
One player who should be sitting in the press box is Casey Mittelstadt, but head coach Don Granato seems to be hesitant to take the former first round pick off the ice. While Mittelstadt is statistically on pace for the best season of his career and is playing better than advertised, his production is still pedestrian, except in one major category.
This major statistic is keeping the Buffalo Sabres from sitting Mittelstadt
Nine of Mittelstadt’s 13 points this season have come on the power play, and that alone has given Granato all the reasoning he needs to keep playing the star-crossed center. But at 5-on-5, his game has continued to suffer, and given his -8 in the +/- category, he is often on the ice when the Sabres allow goals.
Earlier in the season, Mittelstadt also proved himself effective at winning faceoffs, but that success has since gone to the wayside. In Monday’s loss vs. the Tampa Bay Lightning, he went 1 for 10 on the draws, bringing his FOW% down to just 48.1% this season.
Overall, Mittelstadt’s production on the power play is saving him from watching from the box, but if that production starts to stagnate, expect to see the former eighth overall pick watching the game. Or, if the Buffalo Sabres get sound output on the man advantage elsewhere, Mittelstadt may also, at last, become a healthy scratch. We will find out in the very near future.
(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference)
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