The Devils have hired a new analytics guru. His name is Tyler Dellow and he comes with some serious credentials.
Although his day job was as a lawyer, practicing civil litigation in Toronto (he earned his law degree in 2006 from the University of Toronto), Dellow founded mc79hockey.com, which the press release put out on the subject by the Devils mentions “was one of the first analytics-based blogs for hockey.” While working on the site, “(h)e pioneered work in advanced stats, including research that is prevalent today.”
Following this work, he also spent time as a staff writer at The Athletic – where he focused “on analytics in the hockey community.” He was also “a featured speaker at numerous sports analytics conferences including the M.I.T. Sloan Sports Analytics Conference.”
In August 2014, the Edmonton Oilers came calling and Dellow “was hired as an Analytics Consultant” for the team. He served in Edmonton until 2016.
Now with the Devils, “he will lead a department that will work across all hockey operations departments to collaboratively enhance the planning and execution of focused initiatives.”
Ray Shero said that “(s)ince day one, (owners) Josh Harris and David Blitzer have supported us by investing in the staff and resources it takes to build a team, the right way. We have used those resources to recruit talented people who can increase our organization’s expertise in every aspect of the game. Bringing Tyler on board is just another example of our commitment to progressively building in a manner that can help the franchise achieve sustained success.”
Dellow said that he is “extremely excited for this opportunity to join Ray and work with a great group of people with different backgrounds and perspectives of the game. Being able to collaborate with the entire organization, including HBSE, was a reason that attracted me here. I look forward to building a team that can help other parts of the organization prepare and make decisions on what’s best for the Devils. I appreciate The Athletic for bringing me aboard during their initial stages, which allowed me to continue working in the analytics field and served as a bridge to being able to take this job today.”
This hire shows the Devils’ ownership and management’s dedication to getting better and developing the team. Although some fans may have mixed feelings about analytics, the fact is that the game is trending that way and the Devils need to keep up. Hiring one of the best in the field should only be a good thing in the long run.