Lawless: Pietrangelo at Height of Physical and Mental Game

At 32 and in his 13th NHL season, Alex Pietrangelo finds himself at a physical and mental apex. He's at the height of his powers with a mix of strength, health, maturity and experience combining to make him one of the most effective defensemen in the NHL at both ends of the ice.

"He's not easy to play against, he's a very competitive guy. I remember him in junior. He and [Drew] Doughty were playing in junior at the same time and they both put up a lot of points," Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy says about his time on ice leader. "In the NHL, Alex is known for his offensive upside, which he obviously still has at almost a point a game. Defensively I guess, I have a better appreciation for how hard he competes. Blocks shots and kills penalties. There are those guys who work real hard to keep the puck out the net, and he falls into that category in a number of different ways.
He's a complete player: penalty kill, power play, last-minute, shutdown, compliment an offensive line, kind of player. Those guys are hard to find. I had one in Boston, [Charlie] McAvoy, who certainly falls into that category. And they're not easy to find, that's why they get paid as much as they do."
Pietrangelo is the most complete defensemen on the best team in the Western Conference. He leads what many consider the most balanced six-man D corps in the NHL in offense and time on ice. Along with D partner Alec Martinez, Pietrangelo is tasked with facing the other team's best players every night at both even strength and on the penalty kill.
Pietrangelo has two goals and 17 points through 18 games which has him tied for sixth in NHL scoring among defensemen. It is also the best offensive start to a season in his career.
There are 96 NHL defensemen with 30-plus penalty-kill minutes as of Friday. On the PK, Pietrangelo has an xGA/60 (expected goals-against per 60 minutes) number of 5.45 (13th), a chances against/60 number of 42.9 (13th) and an HD (high-danger) chances against/60: 11.5 (3rd). He's been on the ice for three goals-for and five goals-against for a very strong net of -2 in 36:24 while his team is down a man.
Pietrangelo's 15 assists ranks second among NHL defensemen and his 17 points is tied for sixth.
It's one thing to provide offense but Pietrangelo flourishes at both ends of the ice facing the 14th highest level of competition among NHL defenders according to Evolving Hockey.

Some of the players he shut down this year at 5v5:

vs Mark Scheifele (14:28): 1GF / 0GA
vs Kyle Connor (13:57): 1GF / 0GA
vs Auston Matthews (13:52): 1GF / 0GA
vs Mitchell Marner (13:06): 1GF / 0GA
vs Nathan MacKinnon (11:39): 0GF / 0GA
vs Mikko Rantanen (11:30): 0GF / 0GA
vs Cale Makar (11:27): 0GF / 0GA

Anyone can find that information online. Only Alex Pietrangelo can put it all into perspective. Let's hear from Alex.
Gary Lawless: You and Alec [Martinez] are statistically among the best penalty kill and shutdown D-pair in the NHL. Personally, you rank sixth in points, and second in assists amongst all defensemen. That looks like a guy that can play at both ends of the ice.

Alex Pietrangelo: Well, I take pride in that, I mean I want to be the guy that plays at both ends. I want to be the guy, when the game is on the line, I am on the ice whether its offensively or defensively. I take pride in that; I take pride in being a good defensive player. I think for me and Marty, that penalty kill is something we take pride in, it's a good challenge for us. We've certainly made strides in the last five, six games. It's always a work in progress on both special teams, right? Every team does something different, every night it's going to be different, so for us it's one of those things that we can build momentum together as a pairing for the rest of the group.

GL: Do you say much in the room?
AP: Yeah, I always chat. I like to chat. I know what it's like, especially for [Mark] Stone to be captain, it can't always be the same voice. Me and Marty, and [Reilly] Smith, are those guys that speak up. I think both ways, I think you need to be willing to look at the negative side and kind of look at the mirror. Not only at yourself but as a group. You kind of build on things positively as a group when you have to.

GL: What's a difference between playing for a team that doesn't make the playoffs, and a team that's first place in the conference right now?

AP: Confidence is a big thing. I think last year, especially with the injuries, chemistry was a bit of an issue, guys coming out of the lineup on both sides, offensive and defensive pairs. When you're winning, you're going to feel more confident. When the puck goes in the net, you're going to feel more confident in making plays, especially with the puck. So, at both ends of the ice having success - it doesn't matter what the system is, as long as everybody is buying into the same system, at either end of the ice, you're going to have success. It might not be always perfect, but it's going to work. I think we had [early]success defensively in Bruce's system, and everybody feels confident playing it, and I think that's why you've seen us have so much success.

GL: Why does Martinez suit you?

AP: We play simple. Martinez is kind of like me. The game is simple between the two of us. I mean we move the puck well, we communicate probably just as well as anybody and it's an important thing. He sees the game the way I do. Like I said, it's not a complicated game for him, it's not a complicated game for me. We understand each other in that aspect and our biggest thing is to get the puck moving forward. We are both puck moving guys, and like I said, that's the simple part of our game and seems to be the most effective.

GL: Did you, this summer, look in the mirror and say you want to be better, and did you change anything?

AP: I didn't change a whole lot, to be honest with you. I think the big thing for me was to continue to stay aggressive on the offensive side, especially shooting the puck. I think you can create a lot of opportunities off that. I think last year, people can look at it and say it was an off year, whatever, but sometimes you've got to make sacrifices in your own game. Especially on one side of the puck to make sure you're doing something for your team. Maybe people might look at it the wrong way, I think for us collectively as a defensive core, we felt like we needed to play strong defensively and be a little more patient offensively. And maybe we didn't get the numbers or the looks that we are going to get this year. We took pride in doing the best we could defensively, because we felt like that was what going to win us games. This year, you look at our depth and look the way that each line is playing and scoring. It doesn't matter who we're on the ice with right now, offensively every line is scoring. That's something that is tough to match up for other teams.

GL: You're going to see Connor McDavid tomorrow.

AP: It'll probably be a shared responsibility, just because we're on the road, right? It's harder to match up directly. I don't think we have any issues with that, with the way that our D-core is playing.
GL: Whenever you're playing a high-end player like him, how much time do you spend thinking about that guy?
AP: I'm not going to sit there and visualize six hours before. We know who he is, we know how good he is. We know he's the best player in the world. The thing with him, we've got to take away his time and space. I hate to say it, but he's going to get opportunities, he's going to get chances, and he's too good to not to get opportunities. You can't let those, one, two, three, four good chances kind of get to you. You just continue to be patient and stick to your defensive structure. A player of that caliber is going to get chances no matter what. I mean just look at it with our guys. Look at Jack [Eichel] for example, he's going to get opportunities every night because of how good he is.

GL: You're not old, but you are experienced. Sometimes, there's a difference - I think physically you are still height of your powers, but mentally and experience-wise, that mix might be the best you've ever had. Is that fair to say?

AP: Yeah, I think, it takes time to learn who you are as a player, especially as a defenseman. I look at some guys, like Nicklas Lidstrom, he was winning the Norris Trophy in his 40's. I think he found his balance; I think a lot of guys do. If you look at a lot of guys my age, if you look at myself or Roman Josi, or Doughty or Victor Hedman, we're all kind of in the same draft. You find that balance and I think that mental side of the game is important. Understanding who you are as a player and trusting yourself as a player is a really big thing. Some seasons, things go your way more offensively or defensively, but as long as you stay true to yourself as a player, you'll find success.

GL: How do you feel physically?

AP: I feel as just as good now as I ever have. If not better. Again, that comes with experience, right? I mean after a long off season, you recover your injuries, and you feel better, but it was the most time I ever had off and it was important for me. I think physically, the advancement of every young player coming in, they're younger, faster, stronger. Every player that's been around is adapting and saying, 'well this is what I can do to be faster and stronger and kind of adapt my game.' So, I think you have to find that balance as a professional of what you need to get yourself ready.