Karlsson still evolving in subtle ways for Sens

Guy Boucher might be biased, but the Ottawa Senators head coach is certain Erik Karlsson deserves consideration for the Hart trophy as the NHL’s most valuable player.

“With what he’s done this year, the way he’s done it, I can’t imagine better,” Boucher said. “Right now it’s absolutely sublime, it really is.”

Karlsson is having the most wellrounded season of a career that’s already includes two Norris trophies. But his improvements have actually been subtle, magnified by the Senators’ excellent play this season.

In other words, he was already pretty good.

Even Karlsson wonders if he’s actually at his best, noting no improvements in his skill or skating “or anything like that.”

“I think that as of right now with the team that we have and the style of play that we have I think that everybody has done a good job in adapting to it and finding ways within the system to be successful,” a diplomatic Karlsson said.

His defensive improvement this season is primarily tied to blocked shots. He unexpectedly led the league with 196 entering Wednesday’s games and already has more than last year, when he finished 11th.

He said the improvement has been “helping me defensively to get pucks out easier and not having to battle the big guys in front of the net.”

“The blocks are so well thought out,” veteran Senators centre Chris Kelly said. “It’s not just going out there and fronting it, he’s realizing when the proper time is to block the shot and get the play going.”

The increased dedication to shot-blocking seems indicates commitment to Boucher’s “extremely defensive” style of play, which has the club leading the NHL in blocked shots while leaping from one of the worst defensive outfits to top-10 status.

More blocked shots means less time with the puck though, so the Senators are actually giving up more shot attempts with Karlsson on the ice this year. The captain’s puck possession numbers, relative to teammates, have also gotten slightly worse as he adapts to fit the team’s system.

Absorbing the NHL’s heaviest workload last season — almost 29 minutes per-game — Karlsson has seen his ice-time scaled back under Boucher. Karlsson is actually garnering almost five shifts more per-game than last year (31.7, second-most in the NHL), but they’re cut down by 13 seconds on average.

Maybe most interesting and effective for Ottawa is an increase in Karlsson’s penalty killing duties, which has helped the unit leap from 29th last year to top-15 overall.