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 by their home scorer, giving the home squad 50% or more takeaways than giveaways: Seattle Kraken, St. Louis Blues, Colorado Avalanche, and Vegas Golden Knights. Seattle is the most extreme, with 9.82 TkA/60, but only 3.75 GvA/60. That’s a difference of ~162%. How could this statistic be taken so seriously, then?
Ultimately, it unfairly skews the view of individual players. Pavel Buchnevich of the Blues had 2.66 GvA/60 on the road, but 1.17 GvA/60 at home. That’s a 127% difference. It was a similar case for nearly every player on the Blues: at least 50% better when they were playing at home. It’s not a coincidence.
Related: Philadelphia Flyers’ Matvei Michkov Could Soar in 2024-25 Based on Historical Trends
For Oliver Bjorkstrand of the Kraken, he had 3.75 TkA/60 at home, but 1.92 TkA/60 on the road…a 95.3% difference. If none of these stats are still doing it for you, how about this: At home, the Blue Jackets had 3.64 GvA/60. Mathew Barzal of the Islanders had 3.35 GvA/60. There’s no possible way to convince anyone that Barzal gave away the puck almost as frequently (on his own) as the entire collective last-place Blue Jackets.
Takeaway & Giveaway Scorers: At Least Have Fairness!
The league average is 8.63 GvA/60 and 7.71 TkA/60. The following teams suppressed both giveaways and takeaways (<6 TkA/60 & <7 GvA/60): Philadelphia Flyers, Vancouver Canucks, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Los Angeles Kings.
Why is there a giveaway/takeaway stat on #nhl gamesheets. I count 6 blatant gives by 1 #mnwild fwd last night on PP's/3rd pd. Charged with 0
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) October 28, 2014
The following teams inflated both, calling them more frequently (>10 GvA/60 & >9 TkA/60): Nashville Predators, Chicago Blackhawks, and Washington Capitals. If your team still hasn’t been mentioned yet, that means that giveaways and takeaways are tallied more fairly for them, but it still greatly varies. At its best, the current implementation of the turnover stats remains wildly inconsistent and unreliable.
NHL’s Historical Examples
In 2006-07, the Oilers had 923 giveaways at home (22.33 GvA/60). The Blackhawks had just 99 (2.38 GvA/60). I mean, come on! That’s an over 832% difference. At the end of the day, these are all NHL players. While some may be worse than others, the overall competitive balance in the NHL makes it impossible to believe that such a disparity exists.
Turnover-per-60 statistics were first kept in 2005-06. In every single season from then on, there’s at least one instance of a team giving away (or taking away) the puck at a rate five times higher than another team. And it has nothing to do with roster talent, discipline, or anything of that nature.
In the last decade, the Oilers have given away the puck 13.87 times per 60 minutes at home. In the same time frame, the Minnesota Wild have just 5.52 times. The Hurricanes of the last 10 seasons have taken away the puck 11.76 times per 60. The Kings? Just 3.52…an over 234% difference.
You probably get the gist by now, but the bottom line is that it’s entirely unfair to use these statistics in meaningful conversations regarding skater performance. These metrics are oftentimes used in discussions regarding Selke Trophy voting, and that instantly puts players from certain teams (TkA suppressors) at a disadvantage. The stats are also shown quite often on television broadcasts when trying to hype up a player’s “improved defense”. It’s quite misleading, considering literally every player “improves” when entering certain arenas. If they played there recently, then it’s just common sense. Well, at least it should get to that point.
Maybe the NHL needs to come up with a better way to constitute these instances, or better police the proper enforcement. Or get rid of the stats entirely! This is a nearly two-decade-long issue at this point, and there has been little to no improvement. So please, if you’re reading this, at least do your part. Stop giving unnecessary attention to these downright useless stats. Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.
