San Jose Sharks forward Ryan Carpenter doesn’t play many minutes, but he makes his ice time count. Carpenter has averaged about 11 minutes of ice time per game since his callup on Oct. 27. While other players like Filip Zadina, Kevin Labanc and even Mike Hoffman have rotated in and out of the lineup since that callup date, Carpenter has held steady in his role of fourth line center. His work has earned him the confidence of Head Coach David Quinn.
“He’s done a really good job. He’s a reliable player,” said Quinn after Thursday night’s win over the St. Louis Blues. “A lot of times guys, when a shift ends and nothing good happens, they’re disappointed. Ryan takes a lot of pride in playing the right way. He’ll come off the ice and nothing has happened and he feels good about it because sometimes that’s a good shift.”
Carpenter has consistently had good, uneventful shifts this season. Looking at his goals above replacement compared to the other players on the team, you can see that Carpenter is performing better than two-thirds of the group.
More of this has to do with the little things Carpenter and his linemates do on a nightly basis than what they contribute on the score sheet. While Carpenter earned two assists in the Thursday night victory, he only has three assists this season.
Carpenter chooses the right moments at the right time
However, the one assist before Thursday night was a game changer.
San Jose goal!
— NHL Goals (@nhl_goal_bot) November 10, 2023
Scored by Filip Zadina with 18:07 remaining in the 3rd period.
Assisted by Nico Sturm and Ryan Carpenter.
San Jose: 3
Edmonton: 1#EDMvsSJS #SJSharks #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/18KlnW590P
It was thanks to Carpenter’s hard work that Nico Sturm was able to speed into the neutral zone against the Edmonton Oilers on Nov. 9 and pass it to Filip Zadina for what would become the game winning goal.
The effort did not go unnoticed by Quinn who said after the game, “That was it was a ballsy play by him [Carpenter].”
It’s choices like that that have led Carpenter to become an outlier on the worst team in the league. While the Sharks, as a whole, have not fared well at even strength this season, Carpenter has been a bright spot.
San Jose’s regularized-adjusted plus-minus (RAPM) has been exceptionally bad in all categories, but Carpenter’s has not. In fact, the forward has been better than league average in almost all categories. He has created chances for the Sharks (xGF/60) and he has helped the team generate shots on goal. His play, while not flashy, has been a steadying influence.
Keeping the game as simple as possible
Part of the reason that Carpenter is so successful is that his game is not flashy. He does the little things right. It starts in the faceoff circle. The Sharks are one of the better teams in the league in faceoff percentage and that’s thanks in part to Carpenter. Carpenter has won 52.33% of his faceoffs this season.
Once his line wins the puck, Carpenter keeps his game simple. He knows what the coaching staff expects on every shift. Even when things go right, like his two-point night, Carpenter stayed even keel.
“Past few games, I think just as a line, we’ve been happy. We’ve been building confidence,” said Carpenter. “I think it starts creating speed through the neutral zone and getting out of our D-zone clean and talking and communicating. Being in on the forecheck and getting bodies to the net. It’s nice tonight to be rewarded, but we’ve been just trying to do that. The past few games, I think we’ve been building our game as a line and it was nice to get rewarded tonight.”
Carpenter’s future with the Sharks
While San Jose is certainly in a rebuilding mode and will want to see what they have in younger prospects, players like Carpenter are nice tools to have in your back pocket. His two-way contract makes it easy for San Jose to call him up in a pinch.
It also makes him an ideal player for a rebuilding team. Carpenter brings with him a leadership quality. Whether he’s with the Barracuda or the Sharks, he’s there to show the younger players how to play the game the right way. Carpenter goes hard every shift and works on positioning. He makes smart choices with the puck and does not force plays. His veteran presence has helped younger players understand what’s expected of them on a nightly basis.
Carpenter’s contract, his play in the fourth-line role and his abilities in the faceoff circle make him an ideal pick up for a contending team at the trade deadline. However, it wouldn’t be a bad thing for the Sharks to keep him around to help shape the future of the team either.
