Matthews edges Laine at even strength, statistics show

NHL.com goes behind the numbers to compare the top two picks in the 2016 NHL Draft. Auston Matthews, taken No. 1 by the Toronto Maple Leafs and Patrik Laine, selected No. 2 by the Winnipeg Jets, will play against each other at Bell MTS Place on Wednesday (7 p.m. ET; NBCSN, SN360, SN1, TVAS) and again in Toronto on Saturday.

Since entering the NHL at the start of the 2016-17 season, Matthews is second in goals (84) and Laine is third (83), behind Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin (90). During that span Matthews ranks first in goals per 60 (1.84) and Laine is second (1.77; minimum 50 games played). The two are among the most dynamic goal-scorers in the NHL, but their production differs at even strength and on the power play.
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Even strength

Matthews, a center, ranks first in even-strength goals (67) and Laine, a wing, is tied for 13th with Anders Lee of the New York Islanders, Michael Grabner of the Arizona Coyotes, Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Viktor Arvidsson of the Nashville Predators (51). Laine has played 11 more games than Matthews (164-153), but they have similar shooting percentages 5-on-5, with Laine first in the NHL at 11.3 percent and Matthews tied for 12th at 10.1 percent. When it comes to overall production, Matthews is 12th in even-strength points (109) and Laine is 47th (90).
Their even-strength possession metrics are similar, with Matthews having a shot attempts percentage of 50.60 and Laine at 49.18. The edge goes to Matthews when trailing in games, where the Maple Leafs center has an SAT percentage of 57.81 compared to Laine's 51.15. That statistic could be translated to game-winning goals the past two seasons; Mathews is tied for fourth with 15 and Laine is tied for 15th with 13. Matthews and Laine start in the offensive zone at a nearly identical rate, 56.85 percent for Matthews, 56.12 percent for Laine.

Power play

Laine ranks second in power-play goals (32), behind Ovechkin (38), and Matthews is tied for 27th (17) since 2016-17. The discrepancy could be explained by Laine having 146 power-play shots compared to 82 for Mathews. Laine leads the Jets in power play shots on goal, and Matthews is fifth among Maple Leafs forwards. Matthews likely will have more opportunity to increase his power-play shot totals this season because of the departure of forward James van Riemsdyk, who led the Maple Leafs with 118 power-play shots on goal during the past two seasons; van Riemsdyk signed with the Philadelphia Flyers on July 1. Laine and Matthews each occupies the left face-off circle on his team's power play, and each scores on more than 20 percent of his chances (Laine 21.9; Matthews 20.7). The difference is that Matthews' average shot length comes from closer to the net (25.1 feet) than Laine's (37.4 feet).
Laine has the edge in power-play points, 49-39, but Matthews has more power-play assists (22) than Laine (17). Since Matthews and Laine entered the NHL, Toronto is first on the power play (25.0 percent) and Winnipeg is seventh (21.3). Through nine games this season, Mathews has four power-play goals, Laine has three.

Overall

The similarities continue in time on ice, where Matthews plays 17:53 per game and Laine plays 17:09. Once again, the difference comes at even strength, where Matthews averages more than 1:00 more per game than Laine (15:31 to 14:14). Each makes the most of his ice time; Matthews is 10th among NHL forwards in points per 60 (3.25), and Laine is tied for 19th with teammate Blake Wheeler (2.97). In their four previous head-to-head matchups, Laine has the edge with five goals in four games, but Matthews has more points (eight; one goal, seven assists).