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Anton Stralman is one of the best defensemen in the NHL. He uses his skill, skating ability and hockey intelligence to shut down opposing forwards and get play going in his offensive direction.

Though his impressive defensive play has started to get the recognition it deserves over the past couple of seasons, Stralman flew under the radar of hockey pundits (and teams) early in his career, bouncing around the league before finding a home with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The lack of recognition that Stralman received early on was mostly due to his style of play, as the Swedish blueliner wasn’t flashy, didn’t rack up points and wasn’t one to deliver bone-crushing hits. With the rise of modern hockey statistics, however, we were able to see just where Stralman was having the greatest impact on the game.

His ability to stop opposing forwards and make a clean first pass to his own forwards allows the 29-year-old to dominate the possession game while on the ice, and Stralman consistently ranks among the top in the league in puck possession metrics.

Anton Stralman is unreal. Stuffs Jack Eichel, dangles three Buffalo forwards, springs Killorn for an easy breakout. pic.twitter.com/fn1gAzRVvQ — Shane O'Donnell (@shane1342o) November 6, 2015

Back when the New York Rangers made a run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2014, Stralman was identified by many as an analytics darling, who probably didn’t receive enough credit for New York’s success. Over the offseason, the Rangers viewed Dan Girardi as more valuable than Stralman and couldn’t match Tampa Bay’s impressive offer. The Lightning have reaped the benefits of signing Stralman, and made an impressive run to the Stanley Cup Final last season.

The use of modern hockey statistics can help us identify other defensemen who may be over-looked due to their style of play, and teams who can do this will reap the benefits, especially in a salary-cap league. Finding underrated talent can be a huge advantage when it comes to building a Cup contender, and most Stanley Cup teams have several players signed to great value contracts.

Mark Pysyk is one such defender, as the 23-year-old rearguard has shown in limited NHL time that he can dominate the two-way game, even if he isn’t racking up points or crushing opponents with massive hits.

Sabres top D pairings by scoring chance %. So basically, put Pysyk with anybody and enjoy. pic.twitter.com/OPw6WxOUgQ — Derek Jedamski (@D_Jedamski) December 16, 2015

As a 2010 first-round pick, much has been expected of Pysyk, but the youngster hasn’t exactly “wow’ed” up to this point in his development. In 88 career NHL games, Pysyk only has 16 points, and it’s not as though he’s been impressive in the AHL. He has only managed 46 points in 142 games while playing for the Rochester Americans. Pysyk isn’t exactly a big, physical defenseman either, and most of his value to a team lies in his skating abilities and his hockey IQ.

At first glance, it seems like the Edmonton native just isn’t on the path to NHL success, but a deeper look reveals otherwise. Pysyk has missed time due to injury this year, and has only played in 18 NHL games. Despite this, the young defender has been a dominant possession player, and impressed many with his hockey IQ, and his ability to break the puck out of his own zone.

Matthew Coller of Hockey Prospectus talked about Pysyk earlier in the season on Hockey Prospectus Radio.

The (Buffalo Sabres) stuck him in the AHL last year, more or less to make sure they finished 30th. No one will ever admit that, but that’s the truth, he was better than Andre Benoit…

If there are people who are listening who don’t know a lot about Corsi, or maybe have some trouble understanding, Mark Pysyk is the best example I think I could use to explain the value of a player who is on the ice for many more shot attempts, or who is a possession player, because if you look at his skill set, he is so good at his first pass, so good at skating and breaking up passes, getting his stick in passing lanes, and winning battles with his stick along the wall, that what you see is the result for everyone else on the ice with him.

I don’t even think he has a point this year, but that doesn’t matter, and he’s been their best defenseman because he’s getting the puck out of his own zone, he’s ending plays, and he’s starting the team on the rush. Even if he isn’t the zone making the direct pass that’s setting up a goal, he’s a major player in the possession game.

The possession numbers match Coller’s scouting report, as Pysyk ranks 14th among defensemen who have played 200 minutes this season in relative score adjusted Corsi For percentage, ahead of notable names such as Kevin Shattenkirk, Drew Doughty, Ryan Suter, Brent Burns, and even Stralman himself. Pysyk also has been outperforming his usage, as his delta Corsi shows us. Pysyk currently has a dCorsi/60 of 10.7, which ranks 6th among defensemen who have played at least 15 games this season.

This impressive performance isn’t new for Pysyk, who has played in 88 total NHL games from 2012-2016, and posted a 3.4 percent relative Corsi For percentage, and a dCorsi impact of 152.6. For a defenseman under the age of 25 to be posting numbers like that is noteworthy, and with more development, Pysyk could end become a player who dominates the possession game in a way similar to Anton Stralman.

Consider that, while in the same age range (19-years-old to 23-years-old), Stralman played in 160 NHL games, had a relative Corsi For percentage of 2.1 percent, and a dCorsi impact of 107.41. As the Swedish defender developed even further, he improved his possession play, and ended up being the dominant possession player that he is now.

Even if Mark Pysyk doesn’t become the same caliber player as Stralman, there’s plenty of evidence to suggest that Pysyk will be a solid NHL defender, who doesn’t really get the recognition he deserves because of his lack of production, and lack of bone crushing hits. This underrated type of player can help teams build Cup contenders in the salary cap era, and with the addition of Ryan O’Reilly, Evander Kane, and Jack Eichel in the offseason, it’s clear that the Buffalo Sabres will be looking to do just that.

Other players may get more credit for the team’s success in the next couple of seasons, but the numbers show that Pysyk is becoming a vital part of Buffalo’s defense, and that the 23-year-old has a very real chance at becoming the next Anton Stralman; a valuable defenseman who wins the possession battle, but gets overlooked due to low levels of production.