RIT hosts Hockey Analytics Conference Oct. 21

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The latest research in analytics for college and professional hockey—and for sports in general—will be explored at the third annual RIT Hockey Analytics Conference.

Advances in data collection and analysis make it possible to quantify performance in the fast-paced, complex sport of hockey. How analytics are used to make predictions—and conveyed to the public—will be discussed during the one-day workshop, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Oct. 21 in the Van Peursem Auditorium, Gosnell Hall, room 1250 on the Rochester Institute of Technology campus.

Featured reporters and bloggers from BroadStreet Hockey/Radio, the Athletic, College Hockey News/Victory Press, Sportsnet, HockeyViz and Hockey-Graphs, and students and faculty from RIT, St. Anselm College, St. Lawrence University, University of Pennsylvania and Washington University in St. Louis will discuss the challenges and new perspectives created by using analytics to illuminate the game. Specific topics include:

• Communicating hockey analytics to the public,
• Predicting NHL player salaries,
• Projecting player development,
• Measuring goaltending performance, and
• Optimizing line matchups.

“Analytics brings a different way of looking at action on the ice,” said Matt Hoffman, associate professor in RIT’s School of Mathematical Sciences. “If you collect enough data, you can test things you think you know and test patterns you didn’t see. It allows you to explore the game.”

The event—organized by Hoffman and Ryan Stimson, editor at Hockey-Graphs— is sponsored by the RIT College of Science and the RIT School of Mathematical Sciences.

Registration is $25 for the general public and $5 for students. For more information, or to register, go to the RIT College of Science website.

Media and hockey industry members should contact Hoffman (mjhsma@rit.edu) or Stimson (hockeypassingstats@gmail.com) if registration is closed.