Scouting Report
These two are closely matched in overall FO% (49.5% vs 49.4%). Look for Staal on neutral-zone draws (100% H2H, 5 meetings).
Prediction Breakdown
Model
XGBoost ML Model
Overall FO% (Bayesian)
Staal 49.6% vs Thornton 49.5% (+0.1%)
H2H factor
Not applied (9 meetings, need 10+)
Offensive zone
Staal 55.6%
Defensive zone
Thornton 50.9%
Neutral zone
Thornton 51.2%
Result
Eric Staal favored at 50.4%
50.4%
49.6%
Staal
Thornton
Head-to-Head Record
8
-
1
(9 meetings)
8
1
Staal
Thornton
Last 9: Staal 8-1 Thornton
Zone Breakdown
Offensive Zone
Edge: Staal
2
0
Staal
Thornton
2 total
Defensive Zone
Even
1
1
Staal
Thornton
2 total
Neutral Zone
Edge: Staal
5
0
Staal
Thornton
5 total
Situation Matchup
Situation
Staal
Thornton
Edge
Even Strength
49.6% (779)
48.9% (583)
+0.7%
Power Play
49.7% (179)
52.5% (59)
-2.8%
Penalty Kill
48.8% (41)
58.3% (12)
-9.5%
On penalty kill, Thornton has a +9.5% edge.
Handedness & Splits
Handedness
Thornton shoots left. Staal is 50.3% vs left-shot opponents (622).
Staal shoots left. Thornton is 46.9% vs left-shot opponents (407).
Home / Away
Staal
Thornton
Home
52.0% (542)
51.6% (341)
Away
46.6% (457)
47.0% (313)
By Period
Staal
Thornton
P1
44.2%
53.9%
P2
50.3%
46.9%
P3
52.9%
47.0%
Final 5 min
47.2%
52.0%
Recent Form
Player
Last 50
Last 200
Career
Staal
44.0%▼
47.0%
49.5%
Thornton
44.0%▼
46.5%
49.4%
Recent Faceoffs
| Date | Period | Time | Zone | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 15, 2020 | 2 | 15:45 | Offensive | Eric Staal |
| Feb 15, 2020 | 2 | 11:50 | Offensive | Eric Staal |
| Feb 15, 2020 | 2 | 07:48 | Defensive | Joe Thornton |
| Nov 7, 2019 | 3 | 16:50 | Neutral | Eric Staal |
| Nov 7, 2019 | 2 | 19:15 | Neutral | Eric Staal |
| Nov 7, 2019 | 2 | 15:51 | Neutral | Eric Staal |
| Nov 7, 2019 | 2 | 05:09 | Neutral | Eric Staal |
| Nov 7, 2019 | 1 | 16:40 | Neutral | Eric Staal |
| Nov 7, 2019 | 1 | 03:14 | Defensive | Eric Staal |