Oftentimes, the words “giveaway” and “takeaway” are thrown around in hockey-related discourse. But what actually constitutes these terms? The NHL’s definition of a giveaway is “an unforced error that results in giving the puck up to the opposition.” On the other hand, a takeaway is defined as when “the player takes the puck from the opposition, rather than gaining possession through opposition error.”
That’s great and all, but the primary issue is that it leaves it up for the home scorer’s interpretation. NHL statistics varying based on arena is not a new concept, especially when it comes to shots on goal (SOG). But even the biggest disparity in SOGs won’t impact the data by more than ~7%. For giveaways and takeaways, the difference between arenas could (in some cases) be upwards of 200%.
2023-24 NHL Season Examples
The Calgary Flames were dead-last in the NHL last season with 532 giveaways at home. The Columbus Blue Jackets, on the other hand, were the best in the NHL with 151 giveaways in their barn. That’s right – the Calgary team that had 15 more standings points than Columbus, somehow had 252% more turnovers in just 41 home games. Makes sense.
If that wasn’t enough to persuade you, the Western Conference champion Edmonton Oilers (104 points) had 508 giveaways at home; the league-worst San Jose Sharks (47 points) had just 255. Maybe it’s just me – but something tells me that the Oilers probably didn’t give away the puck at a 99% higher rate than the literal worst team last season.
We see the same trend in takeaways: the St. Louis Blues (bottom-10 team in goals for) took the puck away 481 times, while the Vancouver Canucks (top-10 in goals for) only did 240 times. Sure.
Based on the numbers, it appears that many home scorers are way tougher on the home team compared to the away. And some vice versa. Here are the teams that are consistently tacked with at least 50% more giveaways than takeaways, hurting their team stats: Calgary Flames, Ottawa Senators, Montreal Canadiens, Nashville Predators, Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Islanders, Carolina Hurricanes and Florida Panthers. Montreal is the most extreme, with 12.02 giveaways per 60 minutes (GvA/60) tallied against them, but just 5.44 takeaways per 60 (TkA/60).
On the other hand, these are the teams that are favored…
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