How Chris Kunitz makes Sidney Crosby tougher to battle

Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby is the best player in hockey, but it's a team game so as good as Crosby is, he can't do it alone. Even the best hockey playing human on the planet needs a sturdy brother in arms, a guy he can battle effectively alongside, a warrior-type with whom he has chemistry.

In Chris Kunitz, Crosby has a perfect foil. Where Crosby was touted as "the next great player" from the age of 15, Kunitz went undrafted. He even cleared waivers once. 

Though Crosby's hard-nosed play, ability to win puck-battles and unparalleled coordination has been central to his success, Kunitz's defensive abilities and forechecking skills and general immovability in the slot are a perfect compliment for what Crosby brings to the ice.

Over the past seven years Crosby and Kunitz have been through the ringer together. As line-mates, the two have logged over 2600 minutes together at even-strength since the 2007-08 campaign, and in recent years have been all but inseparable (even at the 2014 Winter Olympics). 

It would be untrue to describe Kunitz as a necessary condition for Crosby's success. He's the best in the world and he'd be productive with anyone. It's worth noting that Crosby has never been quite as dominant with anyone else though. 

What many hockey fans don't quite understand about Crosby is that it's not just the gaudy offensive totals that make him a dominant player, it's also his ability to dominate the flow of play. More than helping Crosby generate offense, this is where Kunitz has had an enormous impact on Crosby. 

If we compare Crosby's results in his 2600 even-strength playing with Kunitz, against the 3000 even-strength minutes he's played without Kunitz, it becomes clear that when they battle together Kunitz makes Crosby a stingier all-around defensive player. 

The data bears out that impression. When Crosby has shared the ice with Kunitz since 2007, the Penguins have allowed nearly a goal against and over four fewer shot attempts against per sixty minutes of even-strength ice-time than they've permitted when Crosby is on the ice with other line-mates.

Kunitz has generally had a marginally positive impact on Crosby's offense too, as the Penguins have manufactured .41 more goals and just over four additional shot attempts for per 60 when Kunitz is with Crosby than they've managed when Crosby is on the ice without his most regular wingman. That impact is notable but at the margins, whereas Kunitz's impact on Crosby's defensive effectiveness is massive.

Like with Boston Bruins forward Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand, Kunitz and Crosby together amount to more than the sum of their parts. 

That Kunitz has the ability to "improve" a high-end player like Crosby speaks to his strengths as a two-way player. It's also a testament to the chemistry that Crosby and Kunitz have developed over the many seasons they've spent occupying the same foxhole.