Giving Credit to the Shot Blockers

Who knows which hockey sage coined the phrase, "100% of shots that don't reach the net don't score", but, as Craig Ludwig's oversized shin pads would tell you, it's one of the sport's infallible truths.

While defenders are often known more for laying out big hits or getting under the skin of a certain offensive star, a goaltender's true friends are the ones that risk life and limb to block speeding rubber bullets, decreasing the chances that a goalie will be forced to make a save.

As the New York Times reports, blocking shots is a skill that also involves shedding your sense of self preservation.

"You have to break the fear," Rangers defenseman Michal Rozsival said. "You try it once, it hits your shin pads and you say, O.K. We all played the game for so long. Nobody really thinks about it anymore. It's like natural. I don't think there's any guy in the locker room who would be thinking, Oh, should I block it or not?"

Blocking shots has become an increasingly important - if still hard to fathom - part of the game. Coaches preach that they are a way to cut down scoring chances, to keep life easier for the goaltenders, and to turn defense into something practiced by the whole team, not just the defensemen.

So, just who is the best at helping out their goalies?

Not surprisingly, the top of the list is populated by defensemen, those folks who need to make a living on, well, defending (durr...)

Player                  Team BkS

Anton Volchenkov        OTT  93

Michael Komisarek       MTL  78 

Jason Smith             PHI  69 

Greg Zanon              NSH  69 

Niclas Havelid          ATL  60 

Brendan Witt            NYI  60

Volchenkov has long had a reputation as a masterful shot-blocker, as has Jason Smith. Greg Zanon? That's surely a whopping surprise.

Now, who among the forwards put their health on the line the most and succeeds at doing so?

Player Pos Team BkS

Ryan Johnson C STL 25

Chris Drury  C NYR 22

Adam Burish  R CHI 21

Mark Parrish R MIN 21

Mike Fisher  C OTT 20

D.  Steckel  C WSH 20

Now, the leaderboard is very narrow among the forwards, with many of them sitting at 19, 18, etc... Even Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin have 17, apiece.

Of all the forwards, I was quite surprised to see Mark Parrish up there. Known for being an offensive-minded winger, Parrish's game must have really changed under the coaching of Jacques Lemaire, especially since he rarelys seems to score goals these days.

Even though players wear a lot of protective equipment, that doesn't mean it doesn't take a whole lot of bravery and a few loose screws to put themselves in the way of a shot. Even Craig Ludwig, the master of all shot blockers, admitted that shots had an uncanny way of finding those unprotected places on his body where there wasn't a lot of padding.

In the end, we ought to give more credit to players for blocking shots and preventing goals. The Blocked Shot stats don't show up in most boxscores, not do they tend to make the highlights. Yet, at the end of the day, each shot that a player can prevent from hitting the net increasing their team's chances of winning that much more. That one shot could make the difference between a tie or a loss.