Buffalo Sabres: Respected outlet has interesting take on Owen Power
By Sion Fawkes
2023-24 will give us better indications
If Connor Clifton and Owen Power stay healthy, then the 2023-24 season will give us better indications of whether Power’s defensive zone entries were really that bad, or if guys like Jokiharju made them look bad. My initial instinct is telling me that the latter is the case, as Jokiharju’s play last season was nothing short of migraine-inducing.
But, I will also say this – Power is a former number one overall pick, so even if Clifton comes in and flops, or if everyone who could line up with Power is terrible, I’m still expecting better zone entry numbers this season regardless. Power now has 87 games of NHL experience, and while it’s still a small sample size, the game should slow down for him in Year 2.
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His defensive zone entries will be an interesting number to track in 2023-24. And as mentioned, since I’ve become more interested in the analytical portion of the game, it’s something I’ll be keeping tabs on. It will be a wait-and-see game to determine if Power can overcome what is, at least on paper, a weak aspect of his game.
(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference)