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Ice Lab

Left wing · #81

James Neal

Dallas Stars Pittsburgh Penguins Nashville Predators Vegas Golden Knights Calgary Flames Edmonton Oilers St. Louis Blues(traded during the season)
Age
39
Shoots
Left
Height
191 cm
Weight
96 kg
Born
Whitby, CAN
Draft
2005, round 2, #33 (DAL)

Career · 2009–10 to 2021–22

Games
792
Goals
272
Points
522
TOI per game
17:23
xGF% (5v5)
51.8%
Goals above expected
+31.8

Season by season

The regular-season line for each season, with the total, by team for traded players.

2009–10DAL78272855−518:1220013.5%923.8–
2010–11DAL59211839+817:4216013.1%815.849.4%
2010–11PIT20156−116:54521.9%25.256.4%
2010–11All teams79222345+717:3021210.4%1021.050.8%
2011–12PIT80404181+619:0832912.2%3033.955.2%
2012–13PIT40211536+517:2813615.4%1615.154.5%
2013–14PIT59273461+1518:2723811.3%2620.553.3%
2014–15NSH67231437+1218:0522110.4%419.855.4%
2015–16NSH82312758+2719:0426811.6%1425.252.8%
2016–17NSH70231841−1017:4220211.4%1321.352.0%
2017–18VGK71251944−1117:1120212.4%821.247.9%
2018–19CGY6371219−514:571415.0%614.348.8%
2019–20EDM55191231−2016:1811217.0%1515.647.0%
2020–21EDM295510−212:06519.8%35.147.6%
2021–22STL19224−111:58316.5%23.350.4%
Total7 teams792272250522+1817:232,34311.6%156240.251.8%

Form

Rolling averages smooth out single games so the trend shows.

Form, ten-game rolling

Points and individual expected goals per game (left scale), averaged over the previous ten games. Ice time is on the second chart.

Points per gameixG per gameTOI per game (minutes)
00.511.5100200300400500600700
10m12m14m16m18m20m22m100200300400500600700Game

Player card

Model-based

How 2009–10 to 2021–22 compares with everyone else at the position over the same seasons, and the players with the most similar profile.

Overall rating

1st line

95th percentile among qualified forwards, blending scoring 40%, play-driving 40%, usage 20%.

  1. 1st line
  2. 2nd line
  3. 3rd line
  4. 4th line
  5. Extra / AHL

Scoring

1st line
  • Goals /601.1996th pct
  • Assists /601.0972nd pct
  • ixG /601.0594th pct
  • Goals above expected+31.897th pct

Play-driving

1st line
  • xGF% (5v5)51.8%78th pct
  • CF% (5v5)53.1%89th pct
  • Relative xGF%+0.465th pct
  • Penalty diff /600.1052nd pct

Usage

1st line
  • TOI per game17:2388th pct
  • PP time share53.7%92nd pct
  • Offensive zone starts72.2%95th pct
  • Quality of competition24.9%86th pct

Percentiles among forwards with 200+ minutes at 5-on-5 and 20+ games. Ratings rank each column's average percentile among the same players and read it as a role on a depth chart (how).

Most similar players this season

  1. Filip ForsbergNSH0.96
  2. Anthony ManthaDET0.96
  3. Marian GaborikNYR/LAK0.96
  4. Max PaciorettyMTL/VGK0.95
  5. Michael RyderBOS/DAL/MTL/NJD0.95
  6. Jonathan MarchessaultFLA/VGK0.95

Faceoffs

How often Neal wins the draw over 2009–10 to 2021–22, against whom and where, and what a win leads to. Ranked among players with 2456+ draws over the same seasons.

Win rate

32.4%

73–152 · below the 2456 draws of a regular

Against an average centre

33.4%

Opponents won 51.0% of their draws; an average centre would have won 49.0% against them.

Wins above average

−37

Draws won beyond what an average centre facing the same opponents would have won.

Draws per game

1.3

225 draws in all.

By dot, attacking to the right

38%21 · +0.218%38 · +7.533%85 · +0.640%5 · +0.311%9 · +1.840%5 · 0.025%20 · −7.457%23 · −2.837%19 · −0.1Attacking zone →← Defending zone

Win rate at each dot; the small numbers are draws and the xG swing (×100) of winning rather than losing there.

By zone

  • Offensive zone28.5% 35–88
  • Neutral zone30.0% 18–42
  • Defensive zone47.6% 20–22

By strength

  • Even strength33.5% 58–115
  • Power play34.4% 11–21
  • Shorthanded21.1% 4–15

What a win leads to

Shot attempts in the next 20 seconds, for minus against, per 100 draws: +11 after a win, −2 after a loss. Each win was worth 0.2 expected goals per 100 draws more than a loss.

Most-faced opponents

Season by season

SeasonDrawsWin rateAgainst average
2009–106031.7%33.5%
2010–112334.8%34.9%
2011–121526.7%28.3%
2012–13616.7%17.8%
2013–141827.8%26.6%
2014–151741.2%40.8%
2015–162729.6%30.9%
2016–17650.0%53.6%
2017–1820.0%3.8%
2018–191145.5%48.9%
2019–203135.5%35.5%
2020–21728.6%28.2%
2021–2220.0%2.1%

Finishing

Model-based

Did the goals match the chances?

Goals against expected goals

Cumulative goals (solid) and individual xG (dashed) through the season. The gap is finishing: above the dashed line, the player scored more than an average shooter would from the same chances.

+31.8 goals above expected

-50050100150200250300100200300400500600700Game

Goals above expected, everyone at the same position with 20+ games

−500+50+100+150+200

Speed and tracking

From the NHL's EDGE tracking system (2021–22 on): skating speed, shot speed, distance and zone time, for the selected seasons and then every tracked season, to show improvement or decline.

Tracking data (NHL EDGE)

Values from the NHL's puck and player tracking, with the NHL's own league percentile for each. Missing values mean the player wasn't tracked enough.

Tracking

  • Top skating speed34.1 km/h18th pct
  • Speed bursts over 20 mph1930th pct
  • Hardest shot124.2 km/h14th pct
  • Distance skated64 km29th pct
  • Offensive-zone time41.7%46th pct
Tracking, season by season

Each season against the other forwards that season with 20+ games. A season in progress appears once half its games are played, as provisional: season bests only grow. Bursts and distance are per 60 minutes of ice time, so seasons with fewer games still compare. Percentiles are on these rates, so they can differ from the NHL's, which are on season totals.

This playerMedian forwardMiddle half (25th–75th percentile)Hollow dot: too few games to rank, or a season in progress (*, dashed). Dotted line: no NHL games that season.

Top skating speed

34.1 km/h5th pct

2021–22 only

333435363721–222021–22: 34.1 km/h, 5th percentile (19 games, too few to rank reliably)

Bursts over 20 mph per 60

5.048th pct

2021–22 only

24681021–222021–22: 5.0, 48th percentile (19 games, too few to rank reliably)

Distance skated per 60

17.0 km98th pct

2021–22 only

141516171821–222021–22: 17.0 km, 98th percentile (19 games, too few to rank reliably)

Hardest shot

124.2 km/h2nd pct

2021–22 only

12013014015016021–222021–22: 124.2 km/h, 2nd percentile (19 games, too few to rank reliably)

Offensive-zone time

41.7%50th pct

2021–22 only

38%40%42%44%46%21–222021–22: 41.7%, 50th percentile (19 games, too few to rank reliably)