Of all the young and promising players on the Nashville Predators, Cody Glass is one of those around whom there is some of the most excitement. Unfortunately, to say his season has not gone according to plan would be an understatement.
Of course, the fact that he has had two separate stints on IR in the first half of the season is the main reason why. He has only played in 14 of the Predators' first 33 games and been unable to get in any sort of rhythm, but it is not like he has been very strong when he has been able to play.
In those 14 games, Glass has a whopping one goal and one assist, and has seemed pretty invisible overall when he has been out there.
While we do not want to overreact to one rough stretch, it is fair to wonder what exactly is going on, and if we believe that he can and will fix it.
Glass has been victim of horrible luck to start his 3rd season with Preds
As mentioned, Glass' unavailability thus far into the season has been the root of his issues. Especially with young players like him, dealing with that can put a serious damper on what he is capable of, and Andrew Brunette himself has admitted that it will take time for Glass to get fully back to speed.
Ahead of tonight's game, Andrew Brunette shed light on how he's feeling about Cody Glass who's battled injury and consistency this season. #Preds pic.twitter.com/3ZAFC8e3V0
— Nick Kieser 🏒 (@KieserNick) December 19, 2023
Obviously, it is completely wrong to turn your back on a promising player like Glass when he is dealing with a situation like this. His contract also is one-way, so let's not sit here and worry about him potentially losing his spot on the team anytime soon, or even being sent back to Milwaukee.
But the fact of the matter is that Glass has underperformed relative to his preseason expectations, and you cannot just blame everything on the injuries that have happened to him.
Besides his lackluster point total so far, his offensive point shares, an estimate of the number of points he is contributing due to his offense, has been terrible. It is second to last on the entire team at -0.2, and the only player on the team who is behind him is Luke Schenn.
Just looking at that, it appears as though Glass is hurting the Predators' offense if anything. But when you dig deeper, it is not quite that simple, he has actually been decently involved, and not having things go his way when he has been.
According to MoneyPuck, Glass is 14th on the team in expected goals with 3.2, and second to last on the team in goals above expected with -2.2. It still would not be super impressive if that gap was closed to zero, but it shows that he has been getting unlucky, and the next few numbers emphasize that even more.
Glass is Performing Well in Underlying Analytical Categories
Glass' expected goals per 60 minutes, which is a better reflection of what he is making of his opportunities, is fourth on the entire team at 1.01. That trails only Filip Forsberg, Ryan O'Reilly, and Colton Sissons, who have been probably the three best forwards on the Predators this year.
Glass has also been noticeable in the shot department, as he is fourth on the team with 7.63 shots on goal per 60 minutes, and seventh on the team with 11.76 shot attempts per 60 minutes. Unfortunately, his shooting percentage has been really low, being the fifth lowest on the team at 4.2%.
The high danger expected goals is also pretty good for Glass, ranking eighth on the team with 1.8, and his on-ice expected goals percentage is third on the team at 61.3%. His off-ice expected goals percentage is tenth lowest on the team at 52.3%, indicating that he is doing more to help the team's chances of scoring than hurting them.
Glass is also sixth on the team in on-ice expected goals differential with 4.7, so the underlying metrics tell you that good things are supposed to happen for the Predators' offense when he is on the ice. I do not know about you guys, but I feel a lot less worried about Glass' performance than I was before I wrote this article.
The hope is that Glass can find a midseason spark similar to what Philip Tomasino has found recently. It's a long haul for an 82-game season, and Glass has plenty of time to start contributing in the goal department.
Not only has Glass been extremely unlucky given his injuries, it just seems that when he is on the ice, the puck is not bouncing his way more than anything else. It only seems like a matter of time before he can stack some games at full health, and consequently rack up the goals and assists that he has been working for.
If the underperformance continues deep into January and close to the All-Star break, then it will be time for a different discussion, but that time is not now. Glass should return to form soon enough, but we will just have to have some patience, as Brunette said earlier this week.