In today’s NHL, with the Salary Cap in place, teams are looking to find every bargain they can find. Whether it be turning over every rock during free agency, or getting big production from a young player on an entry-level contract, getting more from less is almost a necessity to compete when it matters most.
For the Chicago Blackhawks, they had Brandon Saad step up and be a key contributor in their run to the Cup – all the while he was on an entry-level deal. He has since been traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets, as Chicago continues to try and stay ahead of the salary cap.
A big way a player can contribute is by simply putting the puck in the back of the net. While some players don’t get as many minutes as others, a great way to find out how productive one is compared to another is looking at their G/60 mark, or how many goals that player scores per 60 minutes play.
Here are the five players with the highest G/60 mark with at least 500 minutes played at 5-on-5 even strength.
Jason Zucker And The Most Efficient Scoring Bargains
The 23 year old broke out this past season, scoring 21 goals – 17 while at 5-on-5. His G/60 wasn’t just one of the best among the players who made under a million dollars, but in the entire NHL. Only Rick Nash scored at a higher rate than Zucker.
Zucker hit his mark with a whopping 16.9 shooting percentage. After only scoring eight goals in his first 47 games across three seasons, he scored the 21 this past year in only 51 games. Minnesota was in the top half as a team in goals-per-game, a lot in thanks to Zucker – who will be looked upon next year to repeat his production in likely an expanded role.
Hoffman picked a good time to break out, as he was a pending restricted free agent and was recently awarded a salary of $2 million in arbitration. The 25 year old Hoffman scored 22 goals at even strength, 27 overall.
In the first 29 games as an Ottawa Senator – spanning three seasons – Hoffman only scored three goals. He netted the 27 over 79 games played this past season. At a 750K cap hit, he came at even a greater bargain than Zucker did. At 1.43 G/60 at ES, Hoffman was only beat out by Zucker and Nash, finishing third overall in the entire NHL.
Hoffman has a history of lighting the lamp at a high pace, as he scored 98 goals in the last two years combined in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, so this could be just the start for the young forward.
Very much deservingly, the young Russian got PAID this offseason and was one of the most efficient players in the entire league at putting the puck in the back of the net. After scoring 21 goals as a rookie two years ago, Tarasenko increased his total by 16 by scoring 37 overall (25 at ES).
His 1.39 G/60 at ES was fifth overall in the NHL, with only Corey Perry sandwiched between Tarasenko and Hoffman. One of the best young players in the league, there is no surprise in having him at the top of a goal scoring list – and now that he will be paid $7 million per year as opposed to the 900K he was last year, there will be the expectation as well.
Part of Tampa Bay’s ‘Triplet Line’, Kucherov, Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat took the league by storm and helped pave the way for the Lightnings run to the Stanley Cup Final. As a line, the Triplets combined to just a point shy of 200 (73 G, 126 A). On the ice at the same time, they scored 47 goals – 13 more than the next best unit.
For Kucherov, he finished just behind Tarasenko in the overall G/60 category, notching 1.38 markers per 60 minutes played. 23 of his goals came while 5-on-5, the second highest total on this list. As far as it goes money wise, Kucherov may have been the best bargain, as he came in with the lowest cap hit overall at 712K.
The winner of the unofficial ‘Cy Young’ Award in Hockey – which goes to the player who has the highest percentage of his points come as goals, the 24 year old Pirri put the puck in the back of the net himself for 22 of 24 points registered this past year.
While just scoring 12 while on 5-on-5, Pirri only played 49 games – making his even strength numbers, and overall markers, quite impressive.
While coming in with a cap hit of 925K, Pirri registered 1.17 goals per 60 minutes played, seven spots lower than Kucherov. Not bad for a guy who was acquired by the Florida Panthers in exchange for a third and fifth round pick.
Each player made the best of their opportunities by putting the puck in the back of the net, and two of them got paid for their success. The next three will be in line for a raise as well after the upcoming season – and if they continue at this rate they could get quite the hefty increase in salary.
In a league that is becoming more and more goal hungry, having players who can light the lamp at the rate they did – at such a cheap price no less – made a huge difference in each team’s success, each player listed here played in the playoffs. Two of which went past the first round – with Kucherov playing in the Stanley Cup Final.
CHICAGO, IL – MAY 03: Jason Zucker #16 of the Minnesota Wild skates against the Chicago Blackhawks in Game Two of the Western Conference Quarterfinals during the 2013 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at the United Center on May 3, 2013 in Chicago, Illinois. The Blackhawks defeated the Wild 5-2. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
