🏒@HockeyBangers2026-27 projections

Overview

@HockeyBangers

2026-27 Projection

Max Sasson

VAN · Age 25.9 · 🇺🇸 USA · 6′1″, 181 lb · Undrafted
VANteam
Cposition
239position rank
817skater rank
-64overall
-49offense
-15peripherals

Value over replacement, based on 82 games played.
Ideal for H2H 12-team banger category leagues, 16 roster spots.

Per 82 GP2026-27projection2025-2666 GPH228 GPH138 GPPrev 329 GP · 1y
TOI11.4611.7212.2010.8210.33
PP TOI0.290.410.450.380.02
G101613188
A9810611
PTS1924232420
PPP01020
SOG8676628688
PIM123241260
Hits4637413551
Blocks4245394937

Sample: 66 GP · 716 5v5 min (2025-26) — how much ice time backs these rates

Positional rankingCentre · league-wide (of 271)
offenseperipheralsvalue over replacement

Counts = projected deployment × projected /60 rate, per 82 GP. Rates regress off the process metric (ixG, shot-driving), not last year's finishing %. PP points = projected PP rate (anchored on the 2nd-half PP1 role, finishing regressed) × projected PP TOI.

Metrics worth highlighting

The charts that move this projection — where he broke from his own 3-year rate, where the season split in half, and where we’re taking the number next year
Above his 3-year rate
iSH%
21.5422-2323-2424-2525-26

iSH% ran 123% above his 3-year rate last season (21.54 against 9.67).

Below his 3-year rate
1A/60
0.2522-2323-2424-2525-26

1A/60 ran 69% below his 3-year rate last season (0.25 against 0.81).

We project it down
PIM
1222-2323-2424-25H1H226-27
all5v5

We’re projecting penalty minutes 62% below last season, 32 to 12.

Second-half fade
ixG/60
3-yr 0.650.33Q1Q2Q3Q4

ixG/60 finished the year 47% below where it started (0.65 in the first half, 0.34 in the second). The projection leans on how the season ended, so the second half counts for more.

Picked automatically from every chart on this card, ranked by how far each number moved. Each claim is measured off the chart drawn beside it.

Similar & complementary players

Similar makeup Forward
Closest across all seven categories — match % is the whole-profile fit
Complementary Forward
Same position, opposite profile — strong where Max Sasson is weak or average, light where he’s strong
Profile shape — per-82 category values vs the league p99 for the position (same scale as the hero bars)
This player
GAPPPSOGPIMHitsBlocks
the profile below
vs Similar
GAPPPSOGPIMHitsBlocks
similar players hug the shape
vs Complementary
GAPPPSOGPIMHitsBlocks
complements fill the gaps

Deployment

Deployment projection — next-year TOI & PP TOI vs the last two years (the role that drives every count)
Coaching
2026-27 · Manny Malhotra (VAN) new voice
Last year: Adam Foote full season — no change
Metric26-27
proj
2025-26Prev 3Diff
TOI11.4611.7210.33+13%
5v5 TOI10.9810.8510.16+7%
PP TOI0.290.410.02+1977%
By quarter — 2025-26 vs 3-yr baseline
GP  19 · 19 · 15 · 13
TOI*
3-yr 10.3311.95Q1Q2Q3Q4
5v5 TOI
3-yr 10.1611.77Q1Q2Q3Q4
PP TOI
3-yr 0.020.03Q1Q2Q3Q4
*Total TOI by quarter reconstructs 5v5+PP quarterly totals plus a held-flat season PK/GP — NST has no all-strength quarterly export. Level is accurate; quarter-to-quarter movement comes from 5v5+PP.
By season — year over year
TOI
11.4622-2323-2424-2525-2626-27
5v5 TOI
10.9822-2323-2424-2525-2626-27
PP TOI
0.2922-2323-2424-2525-2626-27

Shooting — volume & conversion

How much and how well he shoots — volume (SOG), finishing (% vs chance quality), and the individual shot-quality funnel (iCF ⊇ iSCF ⊇ iHDCF).

Metric (5v5)26-27
proj
2025-26Prev 3Diff
SOG/604.254.696.31-26%
G/600.731.010.61+66%
iSH%14.6521.549.67+123%
ixG/600.520.65-20%
iCF/608.889.17-3%
iSCF/605.284.28+23%
iHDCF/602.772.85-3%
By quarter — 2025-26 vs 3-yr baseline
GP  19 · 19 · 15 · 13
SOG/60
3-yr 6.313.53Q1Q2Q3Q4
iSH%
3-yr 9.6722.10Q1Q2Q3Q4
ixG/60
3-yr 0.650.33Q1Q2Q3Q4
iCF/60
3-yr 9.178.63Q1Q2Q3Q4
iSCF/60
3-yr 4.285.10Q1Q2Q3Q4
iHDCF/60
3-yr 2.852.35Q1Q2Q3Q4
By season — year over year
SOG/60
4.6922-2323-2424-2525-26
iSH%
21.5422-2323-2424-2525-26
ixG/60
0.5222-2323-2424-2525-26
iCF/60
8.8822-2323-2424-2525-26
iSCF/60
5.2822-2323-2424-2525-26
iHDCF/60
2.7722-2323-2424-2525-26
Per-82 count — 3 seasons, 2025-26 halves & 26-27 projection
G
1022-2323-2424-25H1H226-27
all5v5
SOG
8622-2323-2424-25H1H226-27
all5v5
The blue 26-27 point is our projection. The bold line is all situations; the muted line under it is 5v5 alone, so the gap between them is his special-teams production. Full seasons are true per-82 counts; the 2025-26 H1/H2 reconstruct all-strength from the 5v5+PP quarterly exports plus the season's held-flat PK/other. The projected 5v5 point is the engine's even-strength share of the total, converted to 5v5 by his own 5v5-to-even-strength split, so overtime and 4-on-4 scoring stays out of it.
Regression read — where next year's /60 rate lands and why (process over finishing)
RiskGoals projected DOWN: iSH% ran hot at 21.5% vs a 9.7% 3-yr mark while 5v5 ixG/60 0.52 (39th pct league-wide) was flat — finishing, not process. Regressing iSH% toward 14.7% pulls the goal rate ~28% down.
RiskShot volume down 26% (5v5 SOG/60 4.69 vs 6.31) — volume is the repeatable half, so this caps the goal ceiling.
ContextTrajectory: 5v5 ixG/60 fell from 0.65 (1st half) to 0.34 (2nd).

Assists — playmaking & on-ice offense

Primary vs secondary helpers, plus the on-ice offense and luck signals underneath them.

Metric (5v5)26-27
proj
2025-26Prev 3Diff
on-ice SH%8.737.7810.28-24%
IPP68.7676.1463.84+19%
1A/600.490.250.81-69%
2A/600.030.080.00
By quarter — 2025-26 vs 3-yr baseline
GP  19 · 19 · 15 · 13
1A/60
3-yr 0.810.39Q1Q2Q3Q4
2A/60
3-yr 0.000.00Q1Q2Q3Q4
By season — year over year
1A/60
0.2522-2323-2424-2525-26
2A/60
0.0822-2323-2424-2525-26
Per-82 count — 3 seasons, 2025-26 halves & 26-27 projection
A
922-2323-2424-25H1H226-27
all5v5
PTS
1922-2323-2424-25H1H226-27
all5v5
The blue 26-27 point is our projection. The bold line is all situations; the muted line under it is 5v5 alone, so the gap between them is his special-teams production. Full seasons are true per-82 counts; the 2025-26 H1/H2 reconstruct all-strength from the 5v5+PP quarterly exports plus the season's held-flat PK/other. The projected 5v5 point is the engine's even-strength share of the total, converted to 5v5 by his own 5v5-to-even-strength split, so overtime and 4-on-4 scoring stays out of it.
Regression read — where next year's /60 rate lands and why (process over finishing)
RiskIPP spiked to 76.1% vs 63.8% 3-yr — point participation this far above baseline rarely holds; assist share likely gives a little back.

Power play

PP opportunity and finishing — modelled separately from 5v5.

Metric26-27
proj
2025-26Prev 3Diff
PP TOI0.290.410.02+1977%
PP iSH%0.000.00n/a
PP SOG/603.514.480.00
PP ixG/600.730.00
By quarter — 2025-26 vs 3-yr baseline
GP  19 · 19 · 15 · 13
PP TOI/GP
3-yr 0.020.03Q1Q2Q3Q4
PP SOG/60
3-yr 0.000.00Q1Q2Q3Q4
PP ixG/60
3-yr 0.000.00Q1Q2Q3Q4
By season — year over year
PP TOI/GP
0.4122-2323-2424-2525-26
PP SOG/60
4.4822-2323-2424-2525-26
PP ixG/60
0.7322-2323-2424-2525-26
Per-82 count — 3 seasons, 2025-26 halves & 26-27 projection
PPP
022-2323-2424-25H1H226-27
PPG
022-2323-2424-25H1H226-27
PPA
022-2323-2424-25H1H226-27
The blue 26-27 point is our projection. PPG and PPA are the 2 halves of the PPP above them, split by the projection's own goal/assist mix. PP-only, so the halves are exact.
Regression read — where next year's /60 rate lands and why (process over finishing)
RiskPP role projected down: 0.4→0.3 PP TOI/gp (role tapered late (Q4 0.0 vs 0.4 full-year) — projected toward the softer finish) — the biggest PPP lever.

Physical — PIM · hits · blocks

Peripheral counting categories. Noisier and scorer-biased — read as role over the years, not pure talent.

Metric (5v5)26-27
proj
2025-26Prev 3Diff
PIMs/601.532.180.00
Hits/602.932.433.67-34%
Blks/602.562.772.65+5%
By quarter — 2025-26 vs 3-yr baseline
GP  19 · 19 · 15 · 13
PIMs/60
3-yr 0.001.57Q1Q2Q3Q4
Hits/60
3-yr 3.672.35Q1Q2Q3Q4
Blks/60
3-yr 2.651.96Q1Q2Q3Q4
By season — year over year
PIMs/60
2.1822-2323-2424-2525-26
Hits/60
2.4322-2323-2424-2525-26
Blks/60
2.7722-2323-2424-2525-26
Per-82 count — 3 seasons, 2025-26 halves & 26-27 projection
PIM
1222-2323-2424-25H1H226-27
all5v5
HITS
4622-2323-2424-25H1H226-27
all5v5
BLK
4222-2323-2424-25H1H226-27
all5v5
The blue 26-27 point is our projection. The bold line is all situations; the muted line under it is 5v5 alone, so the gap between them is his special-teams production. Full seasons are true per-82 counts; the 2025-26 H1/H2 reconstruct all-strength from the 5v5+PP quarterly exports plus the season's held-flat PK/other. The projected 5v5 point is the engine's even-strength share of the total, converted to 5v5 by his own 5v5-to-even-strength split, so overtime and 4-on-4 scoring stays out of it.
Regression read — where next year's /60 rate lands and why (process over finishing)
ContextHits role-stable at 2.43/60 (30th pct league-wide) → 2.93 projected.
RiskBlocks tailing off: Q4 1.96/60 and 2nd-half 2.20 below the 2.77 season rate — projected DOWN to 2.56/60, weighting the recent decline over the 2.65 3-yr mark.