A call you’ve heard 166 times in Voracek’s career as a Flyer. Likely, a call you should have heard much more often if he listened to your cries to “SHOOT!” Regardless, you never get tired of hearing it, whether it’s Jim Jackson or Tim Saunders. It’s music to your ears.
This year has been par for the course for Voracek. In nine years with the Flyers, he’s averaging right around 60 points per year. This year, he’s on pace for just that mark. What he isn’t on pace for is his average shots on goal mark.
In eight full seasons for the Flyers, Voracek is averaging around 209 shots on goal for the year. This year, he stands at 92 shots through 50 games, a pace (150 SOG) that would put him well below his career average. The most interesting part? Voracek is shooting more in games that he scores, and less in games that he doesn’t.
Yes, it all sounds very rudimentary. “You have to shoot to score,” and that’s a fact. However, the contrast between games where he scores versus games that he doesn’t is an interesting one.
When He Doesn’t Score…
Out of the 50 games played, Jakub Voracek hasn’t scored a goal in 41 of them. In those 41 games, Voracek has 63 shots on goal. For those of you without calculators, that’s an average of roughly one and a half shots on goal per game.
When He Does Score
Out of the 50 games played to date, Voracek has at least one goal in nine of them. In those nine games, Voracek has shot the puck on net 24 times. On average, that’s 2.67 shots on goal per game where Voracek has a goal. How’s that for a fancy stat?
Again, this may all sound so simple and almost insulting to your intelligence. However, it goes to show the basis behind every fan’s main complaint of Voracek. Flyers fans yell “Shoot!” because this is what happens. The more he shoots, the more likelihood he scores.
Voracek currently stands at eighth on the team in shots on goal. Defensemen Ivan Provorov (fifth) and Matt Niskanen (seventh) stand in front of Voracek on that list. Heading the list is Claude Giroux, who has 55 more shots (147) than Voracek, and only three more goals to show for it.
Again, on pace for nearly 50 shots below his career average with the Flyers, Voracek hasn’t had under 200 shots on goal since the lockout year. That year even, he posted 129 shots, only 21 less than what he is on pace for this season.
Mandatory Credit – Alex McIntyre
