The experience effect in the 2016 Stanley Cup playoffs
— -- In an evenly matched playoff series, experience can be the critical, deciding factor. That plays perfectly into the hands of the Chicago Blackhawks and the Los Angeles Kings, who are the only teams with at least 1,200 combined games of playoff experience. But it could be a problem for the New York Islanders and the Philadelphia Flyers, each of whom are below 300.
As each first-round series moves into its critical stages in the coming days, this experience factor may play an enhanced role. Using the previous career totals of each team's active rosters, the series where experience might play the largest role can be revealed, along with the individual players who are most likely to make the difference. Here they are, in ascending order:
Dallas Stars vs. Minnesota Wild
Experience: Dallas has 632 games, Minnesota has 592
Advantage: Stars, 40 games
Series status: Stars lead 2-1
Experience will not play a factor in this series, as both teams are slightly below the average of 750 combined games of playoff experience.
The Wild do own one advantage, however: They have only a single player who is competing in the postseason for the first time in Zac Dalpe. Jarret Stoll is the most experienced player on the team, with 93 games of playoff experience, and won the Stanley Cup twice with the Los Angeles Kings. Their highest-scoring player is Jason Pominville, who has 43 postseason points in 70 games with Buffalo and Minnesota.
For Dallas, the most experienced player is Patrick Sharp, who leads the team with 129 games and 81 points in the postseason and won the Stanley Cup three times with Chicago. He led the league in shots in the 2010 and 2013 playoffs and in goals during the 2013 postseason.
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Detroit Red Wings
Experience: Tampa Bay has 863 games, Detroit has 1,015
Advantage: Red Wings, 162 games
Series status: Lightning lead 3-1
This series is a contest between two teams with plenty of postseason experience, but injuries to Tampa Bay players -- including Steven Stamkos and Anton Stralman -- leave the Red Wings with a slight advantage. In fact, of the eight players in this year's postseason with at least 132 games of prior experience and of the 11 players with at least 100 playoff points, three of them play for Detroit: Pavel Datsyuk, Brad Richards and Henrik Zetterberg.
Tampa Bay's advantage is being the only team without a player who is competing in the postseason for the first time. Even rookie Jonathan Drouin and backup goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy played a few games in last season's playoffs. The team's most experienced player is Valtteri Filppula, who has 72 points in 135 career games and won the Stanley Cup with Detroit in 2008.
Anaheim Ducks vs. Nashville Predators
Experience: Anaheim has 618 games, Nashville has 451
Advantage: Ducks, 167 games
Series status: Predators lead 2-1
In a tight opening-round series between teams with below-average playoff experience, the Ducks have a slight advantage over the Predators.
The two most experienced players in this series will likely spend a lot of time facing each other directly. For Anaheim, that player is Ryan Getzlaf, who has 94 points in 97 career playoff games, won the Stanley Cup with the Ducks in 2007 and led the league with 18 assists in 16 postseason games last season. For Nashville, it's Mike Fisher, who has 40 points in 100 career playoff games, including an appearance in the Stanley Cup finals against Getzlaf and the Ducks in 2007 while skating for the Ottawa Senators.
Pittsburgh Penguins vs. New York Rangers
Experience: Pittsburgh has 868 games, New York has 1,131
Advantage: Rangers, 263 games
Series status: Penguins lead 2-1
The extra blue-line experience gives the Rangers the slight edge in this series. Dan Boyle leads all defensemen in the postseason with 81 points in 126 career playoff games, including a Stanley Cup with Tampa Bay in 2004, and Dan Girardi is close behind, with 108 games of experience.
Pittsburgh's most experienced player is Chris Kunitz, who has 117 games of playoff experience, including a Stanley Cup with Anaheim in 2007 and Pittsburgh in 2009. Their leading scorer is Sidney Crosby, who ranks fourth among active postseason participants with 118 career points in 100 games and also won a Stanley Cup for Pittsburgh in 2009.
These teams have the two most experienced goalies in this year's postseason, with Henrik Lundqvist ranking first with 111 playoff games, followed by Marc-Andre Fleury with 98.
Florida Panthers vs. New York Islanders
Experience: Florida has 662 games, New York has 286 (second fewest among playoff teams)
Advantage: Panthers, 376 games
Series status: Islanders lead 2-1
Jaromir Jagr alone gives Florida a big advantage in playoff experience. With a league-leading 199 points in 202 games, Jagr has more points than the entire combined roster of the Islanders -- and more points than that of three other teams in this year's playoffs (Predators, Blues and Flyers). The Wild have outscored Jagr by just nine points.
Beyond Jagr, the Panthers don't have a lot of experience, including a league-high nine players who have never competed in the playoffs. In fact, Jagr outscores the rest of Florida's roster 199 to 149.
New York's most experienced player is Johnny Boychuk, with 29 points in 86 games, including a Stanley Cup with the Boston Bruins in 2011.
Los Angeles Kings vs. San Jose Sharks
Experience: Los Angeles has 1,210 games (second most among playoff teams), and San Jose has 802
Advantage: Kings, 408 games
Series status: Sharks lead 2-1
With a Stanley Cup victory in two of the past four seasons, the Kings are one of only a few teams that have a significant experience advantage over the Sharks.
The Kings' most experienced player is Rob Scuderi, with 14 points in 117 playoff games, and the highest scorer is Jeff Carter, with 72 points in 111 games.
San Jose's two greatest playoff threats are Patrick Marleau and Joe Thornton, who have 103 points in 147 games, and 100 points in 132 games, respectively, but neither of them have ever competed in the Stanley Cup finals.
Washington Capitals vs. Philadelphia Flyers
Experience: Washington has 930 games, and Philadelphia has 254 (fewest among playoff teams)
Advantage: Capitals, 676 games
Series status: Capitals lead 3-0
With eight players making their playoff debut and a team leader with only 57 games of postseason experience -- Claude Giroux -- the Flyers are the team most vulnerable to fall victim to a seasoned opponent. Sam Gagner is one of those eight players making his playoff debut -- after 615 regular season games, which ranked second to Ron Hainsey of the Carolina Hurricanes for the most games played by an active player who never competed in the playoffs.
Prior to last summer, Washington's most experienced player was Brooks Orpik, who has 106 games of postseason experience. However, the team has added Mike Richards, who leads the squad with 87 points in 124 playoff games, and Justin Williams, who has 78 points in 115 games.
St. Louis Blues vs. Chicago Blackhawks
Experience: St. Louis has 414 games, and Chicago has 1,287 (most among playoff teams)
Advantage: Blackhawks, 873 games
Series status: Blues lead 3-1
The greatest gap in playoff experience is the advantage the Blackhawks have over the Blues. The most experienced St. Louis player is Troy Brouwer, who has 19 points in 78 games, including a Stanley Cup with the Blackhawks in 2010. Paul Stastny is tied with Brouwer in scoring, with 19 points in 28 games.
Compare that to the Blackhawks, who have advanced at least as far as the conference finals in five of the past seven seasons and brought home the Stanley Cup three times during that span. Their team leader is Marian Hossa, with 144 points in 194 games of playoff experience; both of those stats are second to Jagr's among active playoff participants. Hossa is joined by a core of five players that all have 112 to 117 games of playoff experience: Jonathan Toews, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith, and Brent Seabrook.
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