Sheng Peng
How into analytics is incoming San Jose Sharks assistant coach Rocky Thompson?
Trevor Letowski, who worked with Thompson in Windsor from 2015-17, told San Jose Hockey Now, “He certainly values analytics. That was just kind of coming into play [in 2015]. Back then, I think he was a little bit ahead of the curve.”
Did that interest continue when Thompson took over behind the Chicago Wolves bench in 2017?
“I think it got worse,” laughed Chicago GM Wendell Young.
With that in mind, San Jose Hockey Now spoke with both Young and assistant coach Bob Nardella to learn more about Thompson’s tenure with Wolves, which included a trip to the 2019 Calder Cup Finals.
Young shared how Rocky used analytics to help a Chicago player get a new contract with the Vegas Golden Knights and how Thompson reminds him of Scotty Bowman. Nardella offered his thoughts on how Rocky might help the San Jose Sharks power play and revealed Thompson’s two loves.
On how much Rocky Thompson leaned on analytics:
Bob Nardella: He looks at them, but doesn’t coach off of them necessarily. Not automatically, anyway.
He likes to have his bases covered. He feels if he didn’t look at it, if he didn’t study it, then he’s not doing his job completely.
Wendell Young: I have a video coach who basically became an analytics coach because of how much time he put in with Rocky. He became Rocky’s analytic guy. There was so much information that Rocky wanted.
We were looking at [Brandon Pirri]. The parent team wasn’t so sure. So Rocky goes, here’s his puck possession, chances for, chances against. Here’s his numbers, they’re off the charts, by far the highest of anybody on our team.
It got him a contract.
On what Thompson emphasized on the ice as Chicago Wolves’ head coach:
BN: He’s going to want guys to hang onto the puck. Absorb checks, make plays off of that. Not make blind plays.
Our teams were very stingy defensively. Kind of Islanders-like without the puck.
He’s strong with his power play philosophies. Lots of different breakouts. Some of the teams we played, not many teams vary with their power play breakouts. But we did. He was very creative with that.
Speaking for my league, Milwaukee, they had two breakouts. Iowa. They stuck to it and they were very good, those teams.
WY: He liked puck possession. He didn’t want to retreat when we lost the puck. You know, attack, make the other team make mistakes.
On how early Rocky would pull his goalie:
WY: We had the goalie pulled five minutes into the third period some games. I’m not joking. (laughs)
On how Thompson is like Scotty Bowman (Young played for Bowman in Pittsburgh):
WY: They’re students of the game.
That’s what Scotty Bowman is. Scotty watches a million games a year. He can tell you about every player to this day.
Rocky’s like that. I’ll come in the morning and he’ll tell me about all the games around in the American Hockey League and in the NHL and he’s trying to watch his kids’ games. I don’t know when he sleeps because he watches so much hockey.
On how much hockey Rocky watched:
BN: He’s constantly learning. He’s watching 2-3 NHL games a night.
He’s taking his daughters to hockey, but he’s got his iPad and watching games while helping out. (laughs)
He’s a hockey junkie. Rocky does two things, he works out, he watches hockey.
On how much Thompson has evolved from his playing days:
WY: I’ve never seen somebody remake himself like he did. He’s gone from this tough guy that played hockey as a crazy man, now he’s very clean-cut, articulate in the game systems.
To go from some of those pictures of him with his hair up in a bun and long hair and no teeth. Now, his presentation is unbelievable.