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Zemgus Girgensons

#28 · Centre · Tampa Bay Lightning

Born Jan 5, 1994 in Riga, LVA (age 32) · 6'3", 200 lb · Shoots left · Drafted 14th overall in 2012 by BUF (round 1)

Compare with a similar player

The forwards closest to him in points in 2014-15. Pick one to see the two side by side, or choose someone else.

David Jones CGY · 30 P in 67 GP Matt Read PHI · 30 P in 80 GP Blake Comeau PIT · 31 P in 61 GP Kyle Palmieri ANA · 29 P in 57 GP Justin Fontaine MIN · 31 P in 71 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.

01020302013-14: 22 points2213-142014-15: 30 points3014-152015-16: 18 points1815-162016-17: 16 points1616-172017-18: 15 points1517-182018-19: 18 points1818-192019-20: 19 points1919-202021-22: 18 points1821-222022-23: 18 points1822-232023-24: 14 points1423-242024-25: 6 points624-252025-26: 20 points2025-262026-27: 1 points126-27

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

Season Team GP G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits P/GP Cap hit
2013-14 BUF 70 8 14 22 -6 14 115 161 0.31 $894K
2014-15 BUF 61 15 15 30 -16 25 115 127 0.49 $894K
2015-16 BUF 71 7 11 18 0 20 110 125 0.25 $894K
2016-17 BUF 75 7 9 16 -7 18 112 120 0.21 $1.15M
2017-18 BUF 71 7 8 15 -12 26 113 134 0.21 $1.6M
2018-19 BUF 72 5 13 18 -11 17 78 144 0.25 $1.6M
2019-20 BUF 69 12 7 19 -1 10 85 110 0.28 $1.6M
2021-22 BUF 56 10 8 18 -7 27 92 81 0.32 $2.2M
2022-23 BUF 80 10 8 18 -5 14 114 96 0.23 $2.2M
2023-24 BUF 63 8 6 14 -1 21 73 141 0.22 $2.5M
2024-25 TBL 82 2 4 6 -7 47 83 174 0.07 $850K
2025-26 TBL 74 9 11 20 1 31 89 195 0.27 $850K
2026-27 TBL 4 0 1 1 0 2 2 13 0.25 $925K
13 seasons Career 848 100 115 215 -72 272 1181 1621 0.25

Playoffs

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

Season Team GP G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits P/GP
2024-25 TBL 5 0 0 0 0 0 3 13 0.00
2025-26 TBL 7 0 0 0 -2 4 2 27 0.00
2 seasons Playoffs 12 0 0 0 -2 4 5 40 0.00

2014-15 season totals

GP G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits P/GP Shooting % Avg TOI
61 15 15 30 -16 25 115 127 0.49 13.0 19:05

Contract

$894KCap hitends in 2016, then RFA
$30KCap dollars per point30 points in 61 games
$503KWorth at the going ratewhat teams paid for a season like his
-$392KValueworth 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. He rated at or below a spare-part player, so there is no cost per goal to show. Value is coloured by where it ranks among the 649 ranked skaters whose contract is known. How value is worked out.

The contract

Signed by the Buffalo Sabres on Jul 15, 2012, as an entry-level contract: 3 years and $4.2M, beginning in 2013-14. It runs through 2015-16, with 1 season left after this one, and he is then a restricted free agent.

Season Cap hit Base salary Signing bonus Performance bonuses Paid in all Clause
2013-14 $894K $833K $93K $700K $925K
2014-15 $894K $833K $93K $700K $925K
2015-16 $894K $833K $0 $25K $833K

Each season of the contract, with this one marked. The cap hit is the same every year; what he is paid is not. The pay is as written when the contract was recorded in October 2024, so a later change, such as the rise in the lowest salary for 2026-27, is not shown.

Contracts he has signed

Signed Signed by Kind Seasons Years In all Cap hit
Jul 1, 2024 Tampa Bay Lightning New contract 2024-25 to 2026-27 3 $2.625M $850K
Jun 20, 2023 Buffalo Sabres Extension 2023-24 to 2023-24 1 $2.5M $2.5M
Oct 8, 2020 Buffalo Sabres Extension 2020-21 to 2022-23 3 $6.6M $2.2M
Jul 5, 2019 Buffalo Sabres New contract 2019-20 to 2019-20 1 $1.6M $1.6M
Aug 17, 2017 Buffalo Sabres New contract 2017-18 to 2018-19 2 $3.2M $1.6M
Sep 1, 2016 Buffalo Sabres New contract 2016-17 to 2016-17 1 $1.15M $1.15M
Jul 15, 2012 Buffalo Sabres Entry-level 2013-14 to 2015-16 signed for 2012-13, slid 3 $4.2M $894K

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 2014-15 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.

2014-15 analytics

Rating

-0.1Goals above replacement508th of 665 skaters, 340th of 432 forwards
0.0Wins above replacementgoals above replacement divided by six
-3.3Goals above averagethe five parts below added up

Each number is coloured by where it ranks among the 432 ranked forwards: 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+0.3 54th percentileEven-strength defence-3.8 3rd percentilePower play-1.2 3rd percentilePenalty kill-0.6 6th percentilePenalties+2.0 90th 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 forwards. 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.

-2024682013-142015-162017-182019-202022-232024-252026-27Goals 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

35.5Corsi for %547 attempts for, 993 against
-2.1CF% relative to teamagainst the team without him
37.7Expected goals for %26.9 expected for, 44.5 against
-0.7xGF% relative to teamagainst the team without him
36.6Fenwick for %unblocked attempts
37.3Goals for %25 for, 42 against
99.5PDO8.0% shooting + 91.5% saves
140Attempts takenhis own shot attempts

Each share is coloured by where it ranks among the 585 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

Forward lineGPTimeCF%xGF%Goals
Matt Moulson · Tyler Ennis · Zemgus Girgensons33330:3838.542.212-14
Chris Stewart · Tyler Ennis · Zemgus Girgensons12134:3431.336.22-7
Brian Gionta · Torrey Mitchell · Zemgus Girgensons654:1542.439.91-1
Brian Gionta · Matt Moulson · Zemgus Girgensons1351:1834.739.71-1

The lines 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 lines 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.

15Goalsnot counting empty-netters
12.8Expected goalsfrom 152 unblocked attempts
+2.2Goals above expectedgoals minus expected goals
Chances created 0.66 expected goals per 60 minutes43rd
Shot quality 8.4% chance per attempt81st
Finishing +2.2 goals above expected77thOne season of finishing is mostly luck.

Each bar shows the share of forwards he is ahead of, among the 415 who played 300 minutes or more this season.

051015Game 20Game 40Game 60Goals 15Expected 12.8

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
Feb 24, 2015 @ CBJ W 4-2 1 1 2 0 0 1 2 07:55
Feb 22, 2015 vs NSH L 1-2 (SO) 0 1 1 1 2 1 7 18:52
Feb 20, 2015 vs NYR L 1-3 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 17:26
Feb 19, 2015 @ PHI W 3-2 (SO) 0 0 0 0 2 2 1 19:28
Feb 17, 2015 @ NJD L 1-2 (SO) 0 1 1 1 0 4 4 22:06
Feb 15, 2015 vs PHI L 1-2 0 0 0 -1 0 2 3 17:54
Feb 10, 2015 vs OTT L 1-2 0 0 0 0 0 3 4 20:07
Feb 8, 2015 vs NYI L 2-3 0 0 0 -2 0 0 3 18:28
Feb 7, 2015 vs DAL W 3-2 1 1 2 1 0 2 0 20:51
Feb 5, 2015 vs STL L 0-3 0 0 0 -2 0 3 2 18:15
Feb 3, 2015 @ MTL W 3-2 0 0 0 -2 0 3 2 22:30
Jan 30, 2015 @ VAN L 2-5 0 1 1 -2 0 2 2 23:24
Jan 29, 2015 @ EDM L 2-3 0 1 1 1 0 2 2 20:18
Jan 27, 2015 @ CGY L 1-4 0 0 0 -2 0 2 2 20:42
Jan 18, 2015 @ DET L 4-6 0 0 0 -2 0 0 2 21:07
Jan 17, 2015 vs PHI L 3-4 2 0 2 0 2 4 1 19:57
Jan 15, 2015 vs MIN L 0-7 0 0 0 -1 0 1 1 20:16
Jan 13, 2015 vs DET L 1-3 0 0 0 0 0 2 3 21:55
Jan 9, 2015 @ TBL L 1-2 0 0 0 -1 0 1 1 18:51
Jan 8, 2015 @ CAR L 2-5 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 18:22
Jan 6, 2015 @ NJD L 1-4 0 0 0 -2 0 0 2 19:07
Jan 3, 2015 @ NYR L 1-6 0 0 0 -1 0 2 0 18:33
Jan 2, 2015 vs FLA L 0-2 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 18:48
Dec 31, 2014 vs TBL L 1-5 0 0 0 -3 0 1 0 18:27
Dec 29, 2014 @ OTT L 2-5 1 0 1 0 2 5 2 18:25
Dec 27, 2014 vs NYI W 4-3 (SO) 1 0 1 -1 2 4 1 18:58
Dec 23, 2014 @ DET L 3-6 0 0 0 0 2 2 3 19:31
Dec 21, 2014 @ BOS L 3-4 (OT) 0 1 1 0 0 2 1 20:34
Dec 20, 2014 vs COL L 1-5 0 0 0 -1 0 3 0 20:28
Dec 16, 2014 @ WPG L 1-5 0 0 0 -1 0 1 1 20:10
Dec 15, 2014 vs OTT W 5-4 (SO) 0 0 0 -1 2 3 3 21:01
Dec 13, 2014 vs FLA W 4-3 (OT) 0 1 1 -1 0 3 2 20:33
Dec 11, 2014 vs CGY W 4-3 1 1 2 3 0 1 2 21:16
Dec 9, 2014 vs LAK W 1-0 0 0 0 0 2 1 2 19:41
Dec 6, 2014 @ FLA L 2-3 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 19:46
Dec 4, 2014 @ TBL L 0-5 0 0 0 -3 5 2 1 18:08
Dec 2, 2014 vs TBL W 2-1 (SO) 1 0 1 1 0 3 0 23:41
Nov 29, 2014 @ MTL W 4-3 (SO) 1 0 1 -1 0 1 3 20:26
Nov 28, 2014 vs MTL W 2-1 0 1 1 1 0 1 3 23:54
Nov 26, 2014 vs WPG L 1-2 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 19:11
Nov 22, 2014 @ WSH W 2-1 0 1 1 1 0 0 4 21:13
Nov 18, 2014 vs SJS W 4-1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 17:44
Nov 15, 2014 vs TOR W 6-2 2 0 2 4 0 2 0 18:30
Nov 13, 2014 @ MIN L 3-6 1 1 2 1 0 2 3 18:58
Nov 11, 2014 @ STL L 1-6 0 0 0 0 0 5 3 19:52
Nov 8, 2014 vs PIT L 1-6 1 0 1 -1 0 3 1 17:17
Nov 7, 2014 vs EDM L 2-3 0 1 1 1 0 1 1 17:47
Nov 5, 2014 vs MTL L 1-2 (SO) 0 0 0 0 0 3 2 18:10
Nov 2, 2014 vs DET W 3-2 (SO) 0 1 1 1 0 3 1 18:26
Nov 1, 2014 @ PIT L 0-5 0 0 0 -1 2 2 2 15:05
Oct 30, 2014 vs BOS L 2-3 (OT) 0 0 0 -1 0 0 2 17:18
Oct 28, 2014 @ TOR L 0-4 0 0 0 -2 0 0 9 17:18
Oct 25, 2014 @ SJS W 2-1 0 1 1 1 0 2 5 21:24
Oct 23, 2014 @ LAK L 0-2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 17:48
Oct 22, 2014 @ ANA L 1-4 0 0 0 -1 0 1 2 16:51
Oct 18, 2014 vs BOS L 0-4 0 0 0 0 0 4 1 19:22
Oct 17, 2014 vs FLA L 0-1 0 0 0 0 2 1 3 17:56
Oct 14, 2014 @ CAR W 4-3 (SO) 0 0 0 1 0 2 4 16:28
Oct 13, 2014 vs ANA L 1-5 0 0 0 -1 0 2 2 16:15
Oct 11, 2014 @ CHI L 2-6 1 0 1 0 0 3 3 15:28
Oct 9, 2014 vs CBJ L 1-3 1 0 1 1 0 2 0 15:19