It’s not about the numbers: working in analytics for an elite hockey program

Recently, I’ve received some unsolicited emails from some very smart young people about working in analytics for a hockey team. There are definitely people more qualified that they could’ve tracked down, but most of them are not allowed to talk about their jobs, so I guess they were stuck with me.

It felt a little bit strange corresponding with these mathematics or engineering students, because theoretically, their backgrounds are a lot more suited to this line of work than mine (I graduated in Marketing). I apparently passed Calculus II 10 years ago (I barely remember taking it). I’m a mediocre programmer. And I don’t even work in the NHL.

But there are still a few thoughts I could share.

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Grantland Features: Knuckles vs. Numbers

Sometimes, I hear questions float around about whether the analytics movement has changed the NHL all that much. I wrote about this a bit in my most recent post, looking at player usage, but there’s more to be said. Thankfully, I had a great opportunity to contribute to a documentary for Grantland and ESPN called “Knuckles vs. Numbers,” which focused on the influence of analytics on the reduction of the role of the enforcer. Including myself, you’ll also see interviews with Sean McIndoe (@DownGoesBrown), Steve Burtch, Paul Bissonnette, Colton Orr, and Brian McGrattan. Check it out, get the word out, it’s worth your time.

Now that you’ve enjoyed that, I have some behind-the-scenes anecdotes and information from the experience that are worth mentioning.
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