McLeod has the same xGF% as Cozens. If he's passing an eye test it's because he's scored some timely goals, and is generally getting difficult deployment.
1. The deployment part matters a lot. McLeod is getting much harder zone starts than Cozens. Having the same xGF% as a guy being set up with far easier starts it isn’t a victory lap for the player failing to do better with it. Cozens gets to start in position to score…and doesn’t. And isn’t expected to more than a guy starting on the other side of the rink against the top competition. That’s a bad number for cozens. Not proof he’s doing well. At the very least…it’s an incredible number for McLeod. Either way it isn’t a “look how good Cozens has been, actually” number.
2. No one said he hasn’t had chances. They’ve said, accurately, his stick is where those chances go to die. Every single one this year, and he was leading the team in SOG as of a couple games ago, has been a wasted opportunity. Finishing matters. I don’t give a solitary f*** how often the center on this team with the softest deployment is supposed to score when he doesn’t score any. I care a lot when that person never does. Outside of his magical shooting percentage in a contract year…Cozens isn’t a finisher. Hasn’t been. Isn’t. And until people normalize that that year was the outlier and not every other one is who he actually is…we are just spinning our wheels. They paid him for what he isn’t. Sucks. Can’t keep throwing good time after bad money
3. He’s a f***ing winger.