By the Numbers: Ryan Lindgren

Kraken general manager Jason Botterill upheld his commitment to better his team defensively when he signed free agent defender Ryan Lindgren to a four-year contract in July.

Through the better part of six NHL seasons, Lindgren has proven he can be counted on to play big minutes at a high level. The 27-year-old blocks shots; defends the most dangerous areas of the ice; and last season, was part of the league’s best penalty kill as measured by Net PK% (a metric that includes success rate both in preventing goals by your opponent and scoring goals even when short-handed).

But when your job is to prevent things from happening, how do you notice the details of what a player like Lindgren does on ice to help his team?

Let’s dig in.

Stopping the Attack

One of the first things fans think about when they think about defense is blocked shots. Kraken fans won’t have to change that line of thought when it comes to Lindgren and that’s a good thing. Among Kraken defenders who played at least 200 minutes at 5-on-5, only Jamie Oleksiak blocked more shots per 60 minutes of play than Lindgren last season . In fact, across the league, Lindgren ranked 66th out of 273 defenders with that much ice time in blocked shots -- putting him in the 76^th percentile.

Lindgren also did a good job stopping opponents’ attack even before they attempted to shoot. Last season he was in the 83^rd percentile in body checks in the defensive zone (.39 per game, 5v5 via Sportlogiq). That’s higher than every Kraken defender last year except Josh Mahura.

Watch here as Lindgren tracks Sebastian Aho (CAR20) as he brings the puck into the zone. Lindgren’s body check is the right kind of physical pressure in that it doesn’t just stop Aho’s progress, it dislodges the puck which ultimately gets on Rangers’ sticks ending Carolina’s possession.

And, if the other team tried to get the puck towards the net via a pass? Lindgren was there too. If we look at all Seattle and New York defenders last year, only Adam Larsson had more blocked receptions per 60 minutes of play (5v5) than Lindgren.

Here, Lindgren is tracking with Alex Iafallo (WPG9) who is fighting for position net front. As Iafallo moves behind the net to receive the puck, Lindgren breaks up the pass and sets up his team to begin the breakout.

As a result, within the universe of the Kraken and Rangers’ defensive players, only Larsson and Vince Dunn had a better advantage than Lindgren when it came to shot quality percentage and only Mahura yielded fewer shot attempts against per 60 minutes of play.

Unplugging Opponents’ Power

Lindgren isn’t just a big contributor at even strength. Last season, only Jacob Trouba spent more time on the Rangers’ penalty kill per game than Lindgren which means the Minnesotan was a big part of the team ranking third in limiting shot quality against (1.1 expected goals per 60) and first in limiting shot attempts against (19.45) when short-handed.

Lindgren is comfortable playing purely defensively on the penalty kill. He ranked second last season in hits, first in blocked shots, and third in individual shot quality against all Kraken and Rangers’ defenders. But he also understands how to leverage that ability to suppress opposing teams’ attacks and transition into scoring chances for his side. No team scored more short-handed goals last season than the Rangers. Lindgren said the units liked to play aggressively starting in the neutral zone and into their own zone. The focus was on disrupting opponents’ ability to set up in their power play formation.

“Anytime there was a bobbled puck or anything like that, we were all in sync, and we're all jumping,” Lindgren said. “And we had the forwards that were able to sense when things were open for a chance against.”

Watch here as Lindgren reads two different entries, gains position on the attacking forward, denies entry, gains possession and then sends a quick up to a forward who generates a short-handed shot attempt.

Matching Top Talent

In looking at what to expect from Lindgren, it’s not just about what he can do on the ice but also who he can do it with. Lindgren has consistently played top four minutes throughout his 405 NHL games, and his most frequent partner in New York was 2021 Norris trophy winner Adam Fox, a player who is repeatedly viewed as one of the NHL’s top defenders. The two spent more time on the ice together than with any other player on the Rangers’ roster (4279:45 of 5-on-5 play), and last season, even as New York struggled, when paired together, the duo was able to hold even in terms of shot quality which ranked second-best on the team.

It's also worth noting that Lindgren’s minutes have been dispersed against all of opponents’ forward lines. His performance doesn’t wane when facing top forwards or excel only against bottom six players.

All in all, Lindgren brings stout defensive play, effective penalty killing and discipline to the Kraken – ingredients the team requires as it battles for a return to the playoffs.