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Matt Niskanen

#15 · Defence · Philadelphia Flyers

Born Dec 6, 1986 in Virginia, Minnesota, USA · 6'1", 203 lb · Shoots right · Drafted 28th overall in 2005 by DAL (round 1)

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Stanley Cup NHL Champion 2017-18

Compare with a similar player

The defencemen closest to him in points in 2013-14. Pick one to see the two side by side, or choose someone else.

Kevin Shattenkirk STL · 45 P in 81 GP Mark Giordano CGY · 47 P in 64 GP Mark Streit PHI · 44 P in 82 GP Oliver Ekman-Larsson PHX · 44 P in 80 GP Andrej Sekera CAR · 44 P in 74 GP

Career

Regular season games only. Pick a season to see its game log below. Cap hit is what he counted against the salary cap that season, where it is known.

0102030402007-08: 26 points2607-082008-09: 35 points3508-092009-10: 15 points1509-102010-11: 10 points1010-112011-12: 21 points2111-122012-13: 14 points1412-132013-14: 46 points4613-142014-15: 31 points3114-152015-16: 32 points3215-162016-17: 39 points3916-172017-18: 29 points2917-182018-19: 25 points2518-192019-20: 33 points3319-20

Points by season. The darker bar is the season shown below.

Season Team GP G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits P/GP Cap hit
2007-08 DAL 78 7 19 26 22 36 99 47 0.33
2008-09 DAL 80 6 29 35 -11 52 111 87 0.44
2009-10 DAL 74 3 12 15 -15 18 110 113 0.20
2010-11 DAL 45 0 6 6 -1 30 51 97 0.13 $1.5M
2010-11 PIT 18 1 3 4 -2 20 26 25 0.22
2011-12 PIT 75 4 17 21 9 47 118 105 0.28 $1.5M
2012-13 PIT 40 4 10 14 4 12 67 49 0.35 $2.3M
2013-14 PIT 81 10 36 46 33 51 162 124 0.57 $2.3M
2014-15 WSH 82 4 27 31 7 47 117 143 0.38 $5.75M
2015-16 WSH 82 5 27 32 10 38 150 157 0.39 $5.75M
2016-17 WSH 78 5 34 39 20 32 154 147 0.50 $5.75M
2017-18 WSH 68 7 22 29 24 36 120 117 0.43 $5.75M
2018-19 WSH 80 8 17 25 -3 41 143 167 0.31 $5.75M
2019-20 PHI 68 8 25 33 15 29 126 124 0.49 $5.75M
13 seasons Career 949 72 284 356 112 489 1554 1502 0.38

Playoffs

Playoff games only. Pick a season to see that year's bracket.

Season Team GP G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits P/GP
2007-08 DAL 16 0 3 3 -2 10 17 11 0.19
2010-11 PIT 7 0 1 1 -3 0 5 7 0.14
2011-12 PIT 4 1 2 3 2 6 8 5 0.75
2012-13 PIT 15 0 2 2 -4 11 17 16 0.13
2013-14 PIT 13 2 7 9 -2 8 24 29 0.69
2014-15 WSH 14 0 4 4 -2 0 22 35 0.29
2015-16 WSH 12 0 3 3 3 6 17 38 0.25
2016-17 WSH 13 1 3 4 0 19 24 45 0.31
2017-18 WSH 24 1 8 9 6 8 32 47 0.38
2018-19 WSH 7 0 2 2 0 0 7 21 0.29
2019-20 PHI 12 1 1 2 -4 4 11 26 0.17
11 seasons Playoffs 137 6 36 42 -6 72 184 280 0.31

2013-14 season totals

GP G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits P/GP Shooting % Avg TOI
81 10 36 46 33 51 162 124 0.57 6.2 21:18

Contract

$2.3MCap hit2013-14
$50KCap dollars per point46 points in 81 games
$292KCap dollars per goal above replacement7.9 goals above replacement
$5.1MWorth at the going ratewhat teams paid for a season like his
+$2.8MValueworth minus cap hit; below zero is overpaid

His cap hit for the whole season, set against what he did in the regular season. Lower is better value. In a season still being played the cost per point starts high and falls as the games add up. Value is coloured by where it ranks among the 641 ranked skaters whose contract is known. How value is worked out.

The contract

Who signed him to it, and when, are not on record. When it ends is not known.

Contracts he has signed

Signed Signed by Kind Seasons Years In all Cap hit
2018-19 to 2020-21 $5.75M
2016-17 to 2017-18 $5.75M
2014-15 to 2020-21 $5.75M
2012-13 to 2013-14 $2.3M
2010-11 to 2011-12 $1.5M

Every contract on record for him, newest first, with the team that signed him to it and the day it was signed. The one covering 2013-14 is marked. An extension is signed while the contract before it is still running, often a year ahead. A row with no team or date is a contract known only by its cap hit, most often one signed since October 2024.

2013-14 analytics

Regular season Playoffs

Rating

+7.9Goals above replacement113th of 672 skaters, 31st of 234 defencemen
+1.3Wins above replacementgoals above replacement divided by six
+2.1Goals above averagethe five parts below added up

Each number is coloured by where it ranks among the 234 ranked defencemen: green is in the top fifth and red the bottom fifth, with paler shades in between and amber for the middle. Hover over a tile for its percentile.

Even-strength offence+1.7 88th percentileEven-strength defence+3.3 92nd percentilePower play-0.1 48th percentilePenalty kill-0.3 21st percentilePenalties-2.4 4th percentile

The goals he added to his team's goal difference, compared with a spare-part player given the same ice time. Each part is measured against the league, so zero is an average skater, and the rank beside it is among defencemen. A full season is about two-thirds the player and one-third chance. Before 2023-24 the NHL timed events less exactly, and differently from rink to rink, so expected goals for this season are rougher than for recent ones.

024682010-112012-132014-152016-172018-19Goals above replacementGoals above replacement, by season

On the ice

What happened at five-on-five while he was on the ice. What these numbers mean

53.3Corsi for %1243 attempts for, 1089 against
+7.1CF% relative to teamagainst the team without him
55.4Expected goals for %49.9 expected for, 40.2 against
+7.8xGF% relative to teamagainst the team without him
53.2Fenwick for %unblocked attempts
63.9Goals for %69 for, 39 against
103.2PDO10.2% shooting + 93.0% saves
226Attempts takenhis own shot attempts

Each share is coloured by where it ranks among the 567 skaters who played enough to be ranked: green is in the top fifth and red the bottom fifth, with paler shades in between and amber for the middle. Hover over a tile for its percentile. PDO and attempts taken are left plain, since neither is good or bad on its own.

Who he played with

Defence pairGPTimeCF%xGF%Goals
Matt Niskanen · Olli Maatta71527:4854.154.428-19
Rob Scuderi · Matt Niskanen30230:5151.556.614-5
Matt Niskanen · Simon Despres26132:2962.762.67-1
Deryk Engelland · Matt Niskanen27117:0643.947.65-2

The pairs he spent the most time in at five-on-five, with the team's share of the shot attempts and expected goals, and the goals for and against, while they were out. The two shares are coloured as above, against the league's pairs that played a fair amount together. Hover over one for its percentile.

Chances and finishing

Expected goals adds up how likely each of his shots was to go in, judged by where it came from, what kind of shot it was and whether it was a rebound. All situations, leaving out shots at an empty net. Before 2023-24 the NHL timed events less exactly, and differently from rink to rink, so expected goals for this season are rougher than for recent ones.

10Goalsnot counting empty-netters
7.2Expected goalsfrom 235 unblocked attempts
+2.8Goals above expectedgoals minus expected goals
Chances created 0.25 expected goals per 60 minutes75th
Shot quality 3.1% chance per attempt45th
Finishing +2.8 goals above expected90thOne season of finishing is mostly luck.

Each bar shows the share of defencemen he is ahead of, among the 232 who played 300 minutes or more this season.

0246810Game 20Game 40Game 60Game 80Goals 10Expected 7.2

His goals and his expected goals as the season went on. When the goals line pulls away above, he is scoring more than his chances were worth; below, less.

Where he shot from

Every attempt he took this season, in all situations, attacking the net on the right. Darker red means more attempts from that spot, and each dot is a goal. "Show every shot" switches to a dot for each attempt, bigger for a better chance. Click a goal for its details.

Game log

Date Opponent Result G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits TOI
Apr 12, 2014 vs PHI L 3-4 (OT) 0 1 1 2 0 2 2 22:31
Apr 9, 2014 vs DET W 4-3 (SO) 0 2 2 -1 0 0 0 21:29
Apr 6, 2014 @ COL W 3-2 (SO) 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 23:05
Apr 5, 2014 @ MIN L 0-4 0 0 0 -1 0 3 1 18:25
Apr 3, 2014 @ WPG W 4-2 0 0 0 0 0 2 4 21:47
Apr 1, 2014 vs CAR L 1-4 0 0 0 -1 0 3 1 20:54
Mar 30, 2014 vs CHI W 4-1 0 1 1 2 0 0 3 21:59
Mar 28, 2014 @ CBJ W 2-1 0 0 0 0 0 5 0 21:39
Mar 27, 2014 vs LAK L 2-3 0 0 0 1 2 7 1 23:01
Mar 25, 2014 vs PHX L 2-3 0 0 0 -1 2 1 0 23:01
Mar 23, 2014 vs STL L 0-1 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 23:20
Mar 22, 2014 vs TBL W 4-3 (OT) 0 1 1 0 0 3 0 24:44
Mar 20, 2014 @ DET L 4-5 (OT) 0 0 0 1 2 3 0 27:55
Mar 18, 2014 vs DAL W 5-1 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 20:02
Mar 16, 2014 vs PHI L 3-4 1 0 1 1 0 2 1 27:11
Mar 15, 2014 @ PHI L 0-4 0 0 0 -2 0 3 3 23:05
Mar 11, 2014 vs WSH W 2-0 0 1 1 1 2 4 0 23:08
Mar 10, 2014 @ WSH W 3-2 0 0 0 0 0 5 0 23:14
Mar 7, 2014 @ ANA W 3-2 (SO) 0 0 0 0 0 2 4 27:19
Mar 6, 2014 @ SJS L 3-5 0 0 0 -1 0 1 2 25:16
Mar 4, 2014 @ NSH W 3-1 2 0 2 1 2 3 1 23:39
Mar 1, 2014 @ CHI L 1-5 0 0 0 1 0 3 1 25:35
Feb 27, 2014 vs MTL L 5-6 (SO) 0 1 1 1 0 3 2 27:27
Feb 7, 2014 vs NYR L 3-4 (SO) 0 1 1 1 0 3 2 23:39
Feb 5, 2014 @ BUF W 5-1 0 1 1 1 2 3 1 22:21
Feb 3, 2014 vs OTT W 2-1 (OT) 0 0 0 -1 2 4 4 20:57
Feb 1, 2014 @ PHX L 1-3 0 0 0 -2 4 2 1 22:39
Jan 30, 2014 @ LAK W 4-1 0 2 2 1 0 0 4 20:48
Jan 27, 2014 vs BUF W 3-0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 17:18
Jan 25, 2014 @ DAL L 0-3 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 20:05
Jan 23, 2014 @ NYI W 6-4 0 2 2 3 0 0 0 15:21
Jan 22, 2014 vs MTL W 5-1 0 2 2 1 2 1 1 19:35
Jan 20, 2014 vs FLA L 1-5 1 0 1 -1 0 2 1 20:12
Jan 15, 2014 vs WSH W 4-3 0 2 2 2 0 4 0 20:56
Jan 11, 2014 @ CGY W 2-1 1 0 1 1 0 3 2 21:25
Jan 10, 2014 @ EDM L 3-4 (OT) 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 19:50
Jan 7, 2014 @ VAN W 5-4 (SO) 0 0 0 1 0 0 3 23:00
Jan 5, 2014 vs WPG W 6-5 1 0 1 1 2 3 0 18:49
Jan 3, 2014 vs NYR W 5-2 0 1 1 1 0 1 4 19:42
Dec 31, 2013 @ NJD L 1-2 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 21:21
Dec 29, 2013 @ CBJ W 5-3 0 1 1 1 0 2 1 21:10
Dec 27, 2013 @ CAR W 4-3 (OT) 0 0 0 -1 0 2 3 23:14
Dec 23, 2013 @ OTT L 0-5 0 0 0 -1 0 3 1 24:35
Dec 21, 2013 vs CGY W 4-3 1 0 1 0 0 4 1 22:58
Dec 19, 2013 vs MIN W 5-2 1 1 2 2 2 5 0 23:23
Dec 18, 2013 @ NYR W 4-3 (SO) 0 1 1 0 2 3 5 29:44
Dec 16, 2013 vs TOR W 3-1 0 0 0 1 2 5 3 25:39
Dec 14, 2013 @ DET W 4-1 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 29:26
Dec 13, 2013 vs NJD W 3-2 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 21:24
Dec 9, 2013 vs CBJ W 2-1 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 22:38
Dec 7, 2013 @ BOS L 2-3 0 2 2 0 0 3 5 25:44
Dec 5, 2013 vs SJS W 5-1 0 0 0 2 4 2 3 19:12
Dec 3, 2013 @ NYI W 3-2 (OT) 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 22:08
Nov 30, 2013 @ FLA W 5-1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 18:19
Nov 29, 2013 @ TBL W 3-0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 17:41
Nov 27, 2013 vs TOR W 6-5 (SO) 0 0 0 1 0 3 0 19:53
Nov 25, 2013 @ BOS L 3-4 (OT) 0 1 1 1 0 1 3 15:23
Nov 23, 2013 @ MTL L 2-3 0 0 0 0 2 1 2 18:38
Nov 22, 2013 vs NYI W 4-3 0 0 0 1 4 2 4 16:38
Nov 20, 2013 @ WSH W 4-0 0 1 1 1 0 1 2 14:59
Nov 18, 2013 vs ANA W 3-1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 15:17
Nov 16, 2013 @ NJD L 1-4 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 14:12
Nov 15, 2013 vs NSH W 4-1 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 16:38
Nov 13, 2013 vs PHI L 1-2 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 21:22
Nov 9, 2013 @ STL L 1-2 0 0 0 -2 0 1 3 22:59
Nov 6, 2013 @ NYR L 1-5 0 0 0 -2 0 2 0 20:39
Nov 2, 2013 @ CBJ W 3-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 20:11
Nov 1, 2013 vs CBJ W 4-2 0 1 1 0 5 2 0 15:52
Oct 30, 2013 vs BOS W 3-2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 19:11
Oct 28, 2013 @ CAR W 3-1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 19:53
Oct 26, 2013 @ TOR L 1-4 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 18:12
Oct 25, 2013 vs NYI L 3-4 0 2 2 1 2 0 1 16:34
Oct 21, 2013 vs COL L 0-1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 21:18
Oct 19, 2013 vs VAN W 4-3 (SO) 0 0 0 -1 0 2 2 21:57
Oct 17, 2013 @ PHI W 4-1 0 1 1 2 2 6 3 19:13
Oct 15, 2013 vs EDM W 3-2 0 0 0 1 0 2 4 19:41
Oct 12, 2013 @ TBL W 5-4 1 1 2 1 0 2 3 19:27
Oct 11, 2013 @ FLA L 3-6 0 0 0 2 0 4 2 20:41
Oct 8, 2013 vs CAR W 5-2 0 0 0 0 4 2 1 20:33
Oct 5, 2013 vs BUF W 4-1 0 2 2 2 0 3 0 20:37
Oct 3, 2013 vs NJD W 3-0 0 1 1 2 0 0 0 19:51