During the offseason, general manager Tom Fitzgerald made several moves to improve the New Jersey Devils. Sure, he may have missed out on a few big names. Though, he did address several important areas.
Specifically, he brought in two-time Stanley Cup Champion Ondrej Palat, traded for, and signed, Vitek Vanecek, and pulled off another trade that has benefitted the team significantly.
That specific trade being shipping out Ty Smith and a draft pick in exchange for defenseman John Marino. And of all the moves he made, this one has shown to be the best of the bunch early on.
Marino’s First Season In Black And Red
Coming into this season, Marino missed his career-high point total (26 pointe) with the Pittsburgh Penguins by one point a season ago. As you can see by his statistics this season (0 goals, 3 assists), he impacts the game in a different way.
Of 315 skaters who have played at least 80-minutes of five-on-five ice time, Marino ranks seventh in Corsi against per 60 minutes (CA/60) and first in expected goals against per 60 minutes (xGA/60). Basically, when Marino is on the ice, the Devils are suppressing opponent’s chances – both the quantity and quality of – at a rate that is arguably the best in the league.
to put it simply, Marino has been one of the top defensive defenseman in the NHL this season.
His Offensive Impact
He may not be lighting up the stat-sheet, but he is impacting the offensive attack positively. Marino ranks third on the team with an expected goals-for percentage (xGF%) of 69.97. This figure ranks second in the entire league among defenseman who have played at least 80 minutes of five-on-five ice time.
The most notable part about his offensive impact this year is when he is on the ice, the team is getting to the high-danger areas. At five-on-five, the Devils’ offense has generated 26 high-danger chances with him on the ice. This all has culminated in his high-danger Corsi-for percentage (HDCF%) of 83.33, ranking third best in the league (among defenseman who have played at least 80 minutes of five-on-five ice time).
To summarize, the Devils are also deadly offensively with Marino on the ice.
The Dyanmic Duo
John Marino has spent the most of his ice time this season with Ryan Graves. Together as a pair, they have been great. Per Moneypuck, of 69 defensive pairings who have played at least 50-minutes of ice time at five-on-five, the duo of Marino and Graves rank ninth in xGF%. More impressively, they rank first in xGA/60 as a duo. They have been suppressing opponents at an elite rate.
Marino has not only had an isolated positive impact, but he is also elevating those around him as well. Specifically, Ryan Graves.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, so far, the trade made by general manager Tom Fitzgerald has been a massive victory. Marino has instantly entered the Devils’ lineup as one of the best defensive defenseman in the whole NHL. Meanwhile, Ty Smith, the centerpiece of the trade, is with the Pittsburgh Penguins’ AHL team.
Statistics courtesy of Natural Stat Trick unless otherwise stated.