The Montreal Canadiens have produced an impressive defensive-zone puck-possession success-rate of 70.4% this season. This compares well to last season's success-rate of 67.5%, and is a substantial part of the team's turnaround.
The graph below shows the defensive-zone puck-possession success-rate for each player who has played for the Montreal Canadiens this season. The success-rate represents how successful each player is at moving the puck successfully within the defensive-zone. Defensive-zone events used to track puck-possession success-rate include both passes, dekes, and dump-outs.
Expressed differently, if we were to take each of these success-rates and subtract them from 100 we would have the rate at which each of these players has given the puck away within the defensive-zone.
Gabriel Dumont and Greg Pateryn have not engaged in enough events to make their success-rates representative.
DEFENSEMEN
Tomas Kaberle has the best success-rate when attempting to maintain puck-possession in the defensive-zone. Kaberle's success-rate is the product of an 82.8% success-rate when passing the puck to a teammate from the defensive-zone.
Among defensemen with substantial events, only Andrei Markov has a defensive-zone puck-possession success-rate below 70%. Markov's defensive-zone passing success-rate is also below 70%. As mentioned in an earlier report, this is the product of Markov's tendency to attempt low-percentage stretch-passes from the defensive-zone.
FORWARDS
Among forwards, Erik Cole actually had the top defensive-zone puck-possession success-rate prior to his trade to the Dallas Stars. Ryan White and Colby Armstrong now share the top success-rate; followed closely by Tomas Plekanec and Michael Ryder.
The lowest defensive-zone puck-possession success-rates have been produced by Brandon Prust, Rene Bourque, and Alex Galchenyuk. These 3 forwards are the only Montreal players with d-zone success-rates below 60%.
Prust's low rate is the product of a low d-zone passing-percentage, while Bourque and Galchenyuk's struggles are due to failed defensive-zone dekes; usually occurring when they are attempting to skate the puck out of the defenisive-zone.
2012-13