All Matt Ellis Does Is Win
Is it merely an aberration? Is he the straw that stirs the Sabres’ drink? One thing is for certain – when Matt Ellis is in the lineup for the Buffalo Sabres, they win. A lot.
Before the Sabres and Lightning dropped the puck on the back end of their home-and-home series, Sabres’ PR staffer and stat nerd Ian Ott tweeted something interesting in response to Sabres blogger Chris Ostrander:
.@2ITB_Buffalo Sabres' record with him on the roster in the last 3 years: 76-39-16 (.641). Without: 58-51-13 (.529). #Sabres #EllisEffect—
Ian Ott (@NickelCityIan) October 25, 2011
To contrast those numbers above, Ellis’ scoring isn’t exactly Art Ross worthy. He’s only got 25 points in 131 games played, getting the odd point here and there as he grinds away on the fourth line.
Is it his tireless work ethic; his lunch pail playing style? Regardless of whether or not Ellis truly has an effect on how the Sabres play can be debated forever. What can’t be debated, however, is those numbers. Will the Sabres add another notch to the W column with him in the lineup tonight as they look to avenge the 3-0 shutout they suffered at the Bolts’ hands on Saturday? Looks like there’s about a 64% chance they leave First Niagara Center victorious.
#EllisEffect, indeed.
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