Analytics with Alison: Matty Beniers at the Olympics

Matty Beniers' Olympic campaign came to an end Wednesday after Team USA lost to Slovakia 3-2 in a shootout. The loss was a disappointment after the group had gone 3-0-0 in preliminary play, and falling short of a medal was not the outcome those who follow Beniers, or Team USA had hoped for.

But beyond a team's performance, many look to how individual players contribute in international tournaments as another signal of what a player is already or is becoming on the ice.
So, what can we learn about how Beniers did in his four games played, albeit an admittedly small sample size?
Let's dig in.
Unfortunately, stats from tournaments like the Olympics can be sparse at best. If you just look at Beniers' score line it reads 1-1-2, with four penalty minutes and 11 shots on goal.
Thankfully, our friends at Sportlogiq were able to get us some more information. In four games played, Beniers averaged 19:47 per game for the fourth most ice time of any Team USA skater. He played in all situations (2:20 average on the power play and 3:05 on the penalty kill), and in addition to his shots on goal, he had a total of 13 shot attempts (8th most on the team) including five slot shots and one shot from the inner slot.
That helps, but to put that into more context I reached out to Chris Peters, long-time NHL Draft and Prospects analyst now with Daily Faceoff and Hockey Sense.
"It was pretty clear from the outset that Beniers was going to be USA's No. 1 center," Peters said. "Even though they listed his line second on the depth chart, (that line) played the most. (Beniers) was driving play out there, playing on the PK, playing on the second power play. He was a guy that wanted to have the puck and USA wanted him to have it."

Now understanding how Team USA, a team built on transitional play, sought to use Beniers in the tournament, we went down into the next level of detail of Beniers' game, again, thanks to Sportlogiq.

These numbers are impressive, especially within the context of all Team USA skaters, but they didn't surprise Peters who pointed out that Beniers was one of the most trusted forwards with the puck and the player's speed factored in as a weapon in each of the games Team USA played.
"Look at his rush numbers," Peters said. "(Beniers) could get around, behind and through defenses far more easily than most of his teammates. The thing that I appreciate most about his game is that he has the puck skills, but he doesn't rely on those alone. There's nothing perimeter about him. He's going to put his head down and drive the middle or win a board battle or sell out for a blocked shot. He does everything you could ask of a player, and I think he's only scratching the surface."

Of course, Olympic tournament play is not yet done. Beniers' ranking in some of these statistics relative to all players could change; and four games is such a small base on which to judge any athlete. But you can't help but be encouraged by how the 19-year-old did perform on the international stage.
"(Beniers) looked about as good as I can remember seeing him with the puck on his stick," Peters said. "USA exceeded expectations as a result of his being their top forward. I've always believed going back to (Beniers') draft year that he can be a No. 1 center in the NHL, and I think he's only pushing that belief more by continually improving."