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Zach Metsa

Buffalo Sabres
Position D
Age 27
Height 5'9"
Weight 198LBS
Shoots R
Birth Place Delafield, WI, USA
Born Oct 18, 1998

Key Insights

2025-26
His coach keeps shuffling the players around him

Metsa has been shuffled through 18 different five-man units and none of them have settled.

units of at least 5 minutes; 30 minutes counts as settled
The same few teammates are on the ice with him all night

8 teammates have played at least 100 5v5 minutes with Metsa this season.

each of them also has that long apart from him, so every split below is a real split
Zach Benson is the partner who brings the best out of him
Zach Benson

Metsa is at his best beside Benson: 55.7% of the expected goals together against 39.5% apart.

115 minutes together, 336 minutes apart
It stops working when he is paired with Jack Quinn
Jack Quinn

The pairing with Quinn is the one that costs him: 36.0% of the expected goals together, 45.6% apart.

127 minutes together, 323 minutes apart
Teammates tend to play worse when he is on their line
Peyton Krebs

Krebs does better away from him: 51.3% of the expected goals apart against 36.6% together.

110 minutes together, 961 minutes apart
His linemates play better with him than without him, every time

Only 1 of his 8 regular 5v5 partners post a better expected-goal share beside Metsa than away from him.

partners with at least 100 minutes together and apart

Lineup and with-you/without-you numbers are built from shift charts, which are loaded per season. Seasons without shift data show no lineups. With-you/without-you totals exclude empty-net play, so a 6-on-5 push does not land in a with-or-without-you number. xG is Digest’s estimated model.

All Lineup Combinations

Player Bio Data
DOB Oct 18, 1998
Birth Place Delafield, WI, USA
Height 5'9"
Weight 198 LBS
Shoots/Catches R