Longtime Buffalo Sabres forward Zemgus Girgensons could be wearing a new uniform for the first time in his career. Will he stay in the Queen City?
Nathan Grelia of Sports Keeda claimed Buffalo Sabres forward Zemgus Girgensons struggled in 2022-23. And while it’s true he scored just 18 times in 80 games (10 goals, 8 assists) and logged a career low in average total ice time at 12:59, he by no means struggled.
Instead, Girgensons was an older skater playing for a team that focused on providing ice time for its youngest players on the top three lines sans Jeff Skinner. This put Girgensons on the fourth line with Kyle Okposo and Peyton Krebs, and the trio was a little more formidable than advertised, thanks to their grinding efforts.
Anyway, back to Girgensons, who was fully healthy for the first time in three seasons. If you remember correctly, he missed all of 2020-21 with an injury, and he played in just 56 contests in 2021-22. This past season, Girgensons saw playing time in 80 games, and he excelled as a defensive forward, given his limited number of minutes.
Buffalo Sabres forward Zemgus Girgensons never struggled in 2022-23
For one, Girgensons showed more of a knack for getting in front of shooting lanes, and he logged 49 blocks, his highest since 2014-15, when he had 61. He also recorded 96 hits, and had he hit his career average in ice time at 14:30, chances are, he’d have sailed well over triple digits in that category.
Finally, let’s look at a couple of possession metrics for the pending free agent. For the first time in his career, Girgensons’ Fenwick and Corsi trended north of 50% at 5-on-5, and the Buffalo Sabres on-ice save percentage sat at 92.1% in the same category.
The same thing occurred at even strength, where his numbers weren’t as strong. But once again, his Corsi and Fenwick were over 50%, and the on-ice save percentage sat at 92%. Just looking at these particular numbers alone, it’s hard to say Girgensons struggled.
Sure, it’s true he didn’t see as much ice time. And yeah, that trend will continue should he return for 2023-24. In fact, it’s likely Girgensons may not even be a full-time player if he re-signs with the Sabres, but to say he’s been struggling? That’s premature.
Source: Zemgus Girgensons landing spots: Where could the career long Sabre end up in free agency? by Nathan Grelia, SportsKeeda.com
(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference)