This is the highest this player has gone before, but I think we were underrating just how good he was on special teams. In fact, I'd call him a "special teams specialist" at this level.
Brian Rolston, F
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by wiki
Rolston is considered a utility forward, as he can play as a centre, left wing and right wing competently. The 6'2', 214 pound forward is best known for his highly regarded two-way ability
|
Rolston's versatility made him a regular for Team USA for over a decade:
- Gold at the 1996 World Cup
- Silver at the 2002 Olympics
- Also represented USA in the 1994 and 2006 Olympics
POWER PLAY
When Sturm drafted Rolston last time, I mentioned something like "great penalty killer, can play point on the PP in case of injuries but isn't good enough to do it regularly."
I was wrong - I was thinking of the Rolston from NJ and Colorado. I've been looking for a forward who can play the point on my second unit, and I looked at Rolston's PP numbers on The Spreadsheet. And they are very good.
From 2000-01 (his first full season in Boston) to 2007-08 (his last full season in Minnesota), Rolston averaged: 29 adjusted PP points per 82 games over a period of 563 games.
That's only a little behind some of the well-known second tier PP pointmen:
Rob Blake: 30 $PPP over his best 596 games
Brian Rafalski: 30 $PPP over his best 617 games
Scott Niedermayer: 31 $PPP over his best 533 games
Chris Chelios: 31 $PPP over his best 651 games
Dan Boyle: 32 $PPP over his best 506 games (as of 2010, might be higher now)
Borje Salming: 32 $PPP over his best 527 games
Doug Wilson: 32 $PPP over his best 656 games
(All Stars via overpass)
It appears that Rolston was playing the point on the powerplay for the majority of this time:
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Boston Herald, Feb 8, 2001
"Not goal," deadpanned [Brian Rolston], who has become so important to coach XXX's scheme he is a fixture at the point on the power play
|
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Boston Herald, Mar 31, 2002
A power-play tally would have been a major boost for the B's as the Hurricanes ... Brian Rolston, who has anchored the power play all season from the point
|
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Boston Herald, Jan 13, 2004
A Bruins power play just had ended, and Rolston still was at the point position playing defense very much like a forward.
|
(heh, guess I have to make sure his PP partner is good defensively)
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Boston Globe, Mar 17, 2004
Boston went on the power play when Slegr drew a penalty on center Nik Antropov at 4:41. Rolston teed up a slapper from the right point...
|
There are many more hits from his time in Boston. As for Minnesota (2005-06 to 2007-08):
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by wikipedia
Rolston often quarterbacked the Minnesota Wild's powerplay (a task normally given to a defenseman) due to his booming shot from the point and strong two-way ability
|
I think he's very capable of being the big shot from the point on a second ATD powerplay unit.
PENALTY KILLING
Rolston's an excellent penalty killer. This is much more known.
Quote:
Originally Posted by overpass
PKTime=an approximation of the number of season equivalents of shorthanded ice time that the player played. Calculated by sum of (PlayerPGA/TeamPGA).
TeamPK+=strength of the penalty kill units for which the player played. 1 is average, lower is better. 0.80 means that the unit allowed goals at 80% of a league average rate. Calculated by 1-(TmPGA -TmSHGF)/TmTSH, with each season weighted by the players PKTime.
Best penalty killing wingers by the numbers, 1968-2010
| Player | PKTime | TeamPK+ | | Craig Ramsay | 7.96 | 0.77 | | Ed Westfall | 7.68 | 0.80 | | Bob Gainey | 6.58 | 0.83 | | Don Marcotte | 5.39 | 0.80 | | XXX | 6.16 | 0.85 | | Bill Barber | 3.71 | 0.80 | | Brian Rolston | 4.48 | 0.86 | | Jari Kurri | 4.14 | 0.86 | | XXX | 4.87 | 0.88 | | XXX | 4.92 | 0.89 |
|
Rolston's penalty killing has gotten him a decent Selke record:
- Selke voting – 10th(1999), 5th(2002), 10th(2003), 14th(2004), 10th(2006), 16th(2007)
Part of his effectiveness is the ability to use his speed and anticipation to score SHGs
- Short-Handed Goals – 1st(1999), 1st(2002), 2nd(2003), 3rd(2006)
- From 1995 to 2010, Rolston leads the league in short-handed goals for the regular season as well as the play-offs! (via Dreakmur)
EVEN STRENGTH
Rolston isn't as effective at even strength, but he's not a liability. He's a bit soft, but he's still known as a decent two-way player.
He'll slot into my 4th line at even strength (where eventually he'll be joined by guys who are more useful at even strength).