The St. Louis Blues declined to re-sign unrestricted free agent Barret Jackman for the upcoming season, telling him instead that they wished to go in a “different direction.” While this generally means “younger and cheaper” in hockey, Jackman still has a lot to offer the right team.
In examining his stats, it becomes clear that while Jackman isn’t your offensive defenseman, nor does he have a slapshot from the blue line to rival Shea Weber or Brent Seabrook, he brings different strengths to the table.
His shot-blocking and shot-suppression stats are still strong, as you can see in the table below.
Relative Shot Rate for STL With and Without Jackman. Credit to War on Ice.
Jackman is good at suppressing attempts high in the defensive zone and to the outside, so much so that when he’s on the ice they disappear entirely. In addition to the white areas indicating no shots at all, the darker areas, which appear on the left-handed chart (With Jackman), show strong shot suppression. His best work is done when preventing shots entirely, as in-close shots are actually scored more frequently once the opposing forwards make it past him. A large part of that is Jackman’s lack of footspeed, likely one of the reasons the St. Louis Blues bid him goodbye last week.
While Jackman had the worst CF% on his defensive squad during the postseason at a miserable 49.54, he posted strong numbers throughout the regular season and is more than capable of doing so through the entire season, both regular and post. His regular-season possession numbers came through at a decent 52.79, leading one to assume exhaustion was likely a factor in the series against Minnesota. During the regular season, Jackman posted CF% of 36.11 in November, 88 and 55.88 in March, and 62.07 in April, all against Minnesota. His collective 49.54 in late April indicated not only a failure on his part, possession-wise, but that the majority of his time was spent on the backcheck, playing desperate defense.
Suffice to say, Jackman isn’t solely to blame for his lowered possession numbers, and, in fact, any team that is looking at him would see them as a boon.
But who would benefit from having Jackman on their side? We take a look at some of the potential partners that might make the former Blues defender an offer.
Next: Buffalo
Feb 26, 2015; Buffalo, NY, USA; A general view of the ice before the game between the Buffalo Sabres and the Vancouver Canucks at First Niagara Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports
The Buffalo Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres might seem a surprising choice, but the St. Louis Blues have already shown that they have a good trading relationship with them over the past couple of seasons. Jackman might very well want to go to a team where he knows a portion of the players well, and has enjoyed a good working relationship with them in the past.
But why would the Sabres want to take on Jackman, an aging defenseman, when they have two first-round picks and five more left to them over the remaining rounds? They’re clearly in rebuild mode, and a defender in his late thirties doesn’t fit with the theme of the party.
Ostensibly. In reality, Jackman would fit in the Buffalo Sabres’ dressing room incredibly well as a role model for the newest and youngest members of the team.
He’s someone who, as teammates have said repeatedly, leaves it all out on the ice. Jackman goes as hard as he can, every game, and the word complain doesn’t appear to be in his vocabulary. He was honored this season for playing over 800 games during his 13 years on the Blues, missing games only due to injury or health concerns. His work ethic is beyond reproach and on a team that will be as young as the Sabres will be over the next two to five years, that message being sent both by a mentor and teammate will go a long way towards building the franchise into a winner.
The Sabres will not have a ton of cap space available to them, so getting Jackman’s impressive Corsi ratings (indicating strong possession, for those of you who aren’t familiar with advanced stats) on their side in addition to his off-ice presence for as little as $2.5 million a year (plus a signing bonus, to be sure) would be tough to pass up.
Next: Boston
The Boston Bruins
Mar 31, 2015; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara (33) skates past the bench after a goal was scored during the first period against the Florida Panthers at TD Banknorth Garden. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
The Bruins are, like Buffalo, in the midst of a reorganization and hopefully a rebuild. Their core are aging while their drafting has been less than stellar over the past few years, and letting their first-round, second-overall pick go because they couldn’t find a way to make him work within their system became an even bigger problem than they envisioned.
While this might not be the ideal landing spot for Jackman, practically guaranteeing the 34-year-old would never hoist the Cup over his career, it would work well from a work-life perspective. Jax would fit in well in Boston’s dressing room and defense-first system, and his strong possession numbers would help the Bruins out tremendously on the back end.
Like it would with Buffalo, his solid work ethic would be appreciated in the room and on the ice, and his no-nonsense approach to his work would fly well with the Boston fans and media, as it fits with the blue-collar narrative that franchise so loves.
Add to that the fact that Boston has two UFAs and one RFA on defense who, as of now, remain unsigned, means Boston will probably be taking a long, hard look at the newest UFAs on the market to see if they can get someone who is either cheaper (which Jackman won’t be) or who can contribute more (which, arguably, Jackman could).
Next: Chicago
Jun 15, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Blackhawks players celebrate after defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning in game six of the 2015 Stanley Cup Final at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Bennett/Pool Photo via USA TODAY Sports
The Chicago Blackhawks
The Blackhawks have been brought up by a couple of media members already, most memorably Jeremy Rutherford of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Jackman on potentially joining the Blackhawks: "That would be a pretty hard jersey to put on." #stlblues
But he’d find a way, if it were the right move for him financially or Cup-wise. After all, with the Blackhawks taking their third home last night in six years, it seems they may have found a method to winning consistently. Jackman, who has never lifted the Stanley Cup, might find an offer from them awfully tempting.
But would the Blackhawks be interested in Jackman? Actually, it wouldn’t come as a huge surprise if they were.
Live Feed class=inline-text id=inline-text-6A healthy T.J. Oshie is key /
Not only have the Hawks faced off against Jackman regularly as conference and division rivals, but they’ve clearly outlined him as a strong threat, based upon Andrew Shaw’s excessive checking of the defenseman even just this past season. Additionally, they’ve been hurting for defenders over these playoffs, with Roszival breaking his ankle and likely retiring after this season, Timonen guaranteeing his retirement and Quenneville essentially icing only four defenders over the past two series.
As such, Jackman’s steadiness, fantastic good health and work ethic would all combine to make a pretty tempting package for Chicago’s front office if they can get him at a cheap enough price. Their cap situation is even more strained than St. Louis’s and Jackman may have to weigh the possibility of one final, large paycheck against having his name on the Stanley Cup.
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