Sam Steel

Last Season

Twelve goals and 21 assists in 73 games — 33 points, plus-three, at 16:04 a night.

The Finesse Game

Better than the role suggests and never quite enough for a bigger one. Forty-seven per cent of his unblocked attempts came from inside twenty feet, median 20, and twelve went in from 118 tries.

He shoots from the right places, which on this roster is close to universal and clearly taught. Twenty-one assists is a fair return from a third line.

A hundred and seventy-five points in 491 games is the career.

The Physical Game

Six foot even, 185, and light. Twenty-four penalty minutes. He is not winning wall battles and does not try; the game is played in space and on anticipation.

The Intangibles

Forty-nine point seven per cent of the expected goals, 50th percentile — dead average, which for a third-line centre on a club that finished fourth in expected goals against is exactly the job description.

The shot-attempt share of 46.2 per cent, 19th percentile, is the Dallas pattern again: concede the volume, keep the danger even.

Nine points in his last ten, four of them goals. He is 28, a thirtieth overall pick who never became a top-six forward, and he is now genuinely useful. That is a fine outcome.