Line Combos: 2018-19 Starting Roster II

nippanappa

Registered User
Nov 26, 2018
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198
I don't think you'll see it until there is an injury. You can't say that they don't generate scoring chances. Maybe Wheeler has become Captain Obvious that he is looking for Scheifele when he hits the zone, but that line has 3 dynamics to it. Connor is more straight line than Ehlers. I think Maurice wants to ride his Hull and Oates combo, not that I agree.

i'd like to see Ehlers-Scheifele-Laine. Followed by Connor-Roslovic-Wheeler at least once. Tanev-Lowry-Little. Petan/Perreault-Copp-Appleton.

Something different.

I'd also like to see Logan Shaw in a Jets uniform. With Copp out. Just to see how he fits, and because he's a good penalty killer.

Great line suggestions, would love to see those. But I also agree that it may require an injury for Maurice to shake things out.

For me personally the biggest problem with Maurices lines is Roslovic's minutes. Roslovic should be given a fair chance with offensively talented players with top lines minutes. I think he have looked solid with few minutes on ice he's had.
 
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voyageur

Hockey fanatic
Jul 10, 2011
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Great line suggestions, would love to see those. But I also agree that it may require an injury for Maurice to shake things out.

For me personally the biggest problem with Maurices lines is Roslovic's minutes. Roslovic should be given a fair chance with offensively talented players with top lines minutes. I think he have looked solid with few minutes on ice he's had.

I don't know if he has earned the big ice time. 2 weeks ago Little was on top. I'd like to see Roslovic get into a rythym. I really like the dynamic of Perreault-Roslovic-Appleton. They formed a line that changed the pace of the game, made it easier on the other lines. I think the more this line works, you can change Perreault with Connor, if Maurice sees that Roslovic is feeling it. I think you can switch Roslovic and Little too, but Maurice seems averse to demoting Little, even when he is not going. Lemieux has stifled our 4 line game to some extent. If we can get 3 scoring lines, including Roslovic's we simply need to find a player who fits with Lowry's line, in Copp's absence to maintain the pace. This is where I'd like to see Logan Shaw.

I think Rosie will get to 2C, it will probably take injury though.

I would like to see him on the 2nd PP. Maybe keep Trouba alone on the point. I think his ability to track pucks is an asset that should be utilized more. If he starts scoring consistently, then it becomes easier to move him up the line up, confidently.
 

boydkc

Registered User
Aug 2, 2015
633
244
Ehlers,Schiefele,Laine
Connor,Little,Wheeler
Petan,Roslovich,Appleton
Copp,Lowry,Tanev

Perreault extra with Lemieux
 

PhilJets

Winnipeg is Good
Jun 24, 2012
10,297
7,783
Somewhere nice
Ehlers,Schiefele,Laine
Connor,Little,Wheeler
Petan,Roslovich,Appleton
Copp,Lowry,Tanev

Perreault extra with Lemieux

Swap Tanev and Perreault.

Probably the best combo line up Jets can assembly.

Balancing also t.o.i. for line 1 and 2 forcing maurice.

You can switch
Tanev and Perrault

And Ehlers and KC.

It will probably take awhile still to get to that though.....
 

Whileee

Registered User
May 29, 2010
46,061
33,043
Ehlers,Schiefele,Laine
Connor,Little,Wheeler
Petan,Roslovich,Appleton
Copp,Lowry,Tanev

Perreault extra with Lemieux
Not sure who gets the puck on Scheifele's line, and Connor and Wheeler both struggle a bit on zone exits.
 

Whileee

Registered User
May 29, 2010
46,061
33,043
Start with pairs, and build from there...

Scheifele-Wheeler (if only because Maurice won't break them up)
Connor-Laine (Connor complements Laine with a more direct game through seams and puck retrieval)
Copp-Lowry (not sure why exactly, but they just click in a shutdown role)
Little-Perreault (Perreault makes every line better and he and Little have been very effective)

Now, let's go crazy...

Petan-Scheifele-Wheeler (have played on 25 minutes together, but crushed competition)

Connor-Roslovic-Laine (time to see if Roslovic can drive an offensive line?)

Perreault-Little-Ehlers (crushed competition in the past, can play against tough competition)

Copp-Lowry-Appleton (Appleton gives the line a bit more skill and finish)
 

Robinson2187

Registered Schmoozer
Nov 22, 2015
2,574
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Comox BC
When is the last time Scheifele and Wheeler played a game apart of each other? I think it's like 2 years ago (!) Is it normal with other teams also to play their top lines/duos so long together without even trying things out?

Speaking of which, I would like to see coach trying different offensive combinations other than switching Ehlers and Connor (and Perreault) around. And I'm not talking about Mo's classic 2 period tryouts then reverting back to CSW and ELL..

Connor - Scheifele - Laine
Connor - Scheifele - Roslovic
Laine - Scheifele - Roslovic
Perreault - Scheifele - Laine

Ehlers - Little - Wheeler
Connor - Little - Wheeler
Connor - Little - Ehlers

Connor - Roslovic - Wheeler
Connor - Roslovic - Laine
Ehlers - Roslovic - Wheeler

Possibilities are endless, try something new for at least 4-5 games and let's see what's happening then. Why not even trying players like Appleton, Copp, Petan to insert in top lines and run truly with 3 offensive lines?
0512dd822f79817750411dcba291f7ca897e6c-wm.jpg
 

Zhamnov5GoalGame

Former Director of GDT Operations
Jan 14, 2012
6,600
13,200
Winnipeg, MB, Canada
Ehlers,Schiefele,Laine
Connor,Little,Wheeler
Petan,Roslovich,Appleton
Copp,Lowry,Tanev

Perreault extra with Lemieux

I don't see how our current team is better with Matty P in the press box.
Either way that is never happening.
I'm a Petan booster and hope he gets chances and makes the best of them.
But at this point
Perreault-Roslovic-Appleton
is better then
Petan-Roslovic-Appleton
 

JetsFan815

Registered User
Jan 16, 2012
19,119
23,871
When is the last time Scheifele and Wheeler played a game apart of each other? I think it's like 2 years ago (!) Is it normal with other teams also to play their top lines/duos so long together without even trying things out?
I agree that it's not normal. Splitting up Scheifele and Maurice needs to atleast be an option, right now it seems like that's not even an option for Maurice. At bare minimum the coach should be able to go to that well in games that the team is not playing well in to get lines going but the fact that he has never done that that I can remember atleast until the beginning of last season is starting to concern me.

Mo is treating that combo like a sacred cow and anything that is treated like that is a cause for concern. I have been giving him pass on that but I don't think I can anymore. Scheifele and Wheeler need to be the McKinnon and Rantanen of the Jets to deserve that kind of treatment and they have been far from that.
 
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garret9

AKA#VitoCorrelationi
Mar 31, 2012
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Vancouver
www.hockey-graphs.com
Start with pairs, and build from there...

Scheifele-Wheeler (if only because Maurice won't break them up)
Connor-Laine (Connor complements Laine with a more direct game through seams and puck retrieval)
Copp-Lowry (not sure why exactly, but they just click in a shutdown role)
Little-Perreault (Perreault makes every line better and he and Little have been very effective)

Now, let's go crazy...

Petan-Scheifele-Wheeler (have played on 25 minutes together, but crushed competition)

Connor-Roslovic-Laine (time to see if Roslovic can drive an offensive line?)

Perreault-Little-Ehlers (crushed competition in the past, can play against tough competition)

Copp-Lowry-Appleton (Appleton gives the line a bit more skill and finish)

Eggplant emoji
 

10Ducky10

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In no order, this would be my starting lineup this afternoon...

Copp Lowry Roslovic
Ehlers Little Wheeler
Connor Scheifele Laine
Tanev MP Appleton

JMo Trouba
Kuli Buff
Chiarot Myers

Brossoit/Helle

Despite what everyone wants for Niku, he isn't ready to be a full time starter in the league yet and Roslo needs more time per game.
With Tanev and Apples on the same line, MP should easily handle 4th line center duties and the 4th line should see at least 10 minutes.
Has Buff played much with Kuli the last two seasons?
I'd also start Brossoit to keep his games up...ideally he would play about 27 games or 1/3 of the time and he is playing about 1/4 right now.
 

voyageur

Hockey fanatic
Jul 10, 2011
9,467
8,157
In no order, this would be my starting lineup this afternoon...

Copp Lowry Roslovic
Ehlers Little Wheeler
Connor Scheifele Laine
Tanev MP Appleton

JMo Trouba
Kuli Buff
Chiarot Myers

Brossoit/Helle

Despite what everyone wants for Niku, he isn't ready to be a full time starter in the league yet and Roslo needs more time per game.
With Tanev and Apples on the same line, MP should easily handle 4th line center duties and the 4th line should see at least 10 minutes.
Has Buff played much with Kuli the last two seasons?
I'd also start Brossoit to keep his games up...ideally he would play about 27 games or 1/3 of the time and he is playing about 1/4 right now.

I'd still like to see 4 lines

Ehlers-Scheif-Wheeler
Connor-Little-Laine
Perreault-Roslovic-Appleton
Tanev-Lowry-Copp/L. Shaw

Petan can play either wing on the Rosie line but he hasn't shown he can produce goals. If he played centre, Mau could look to play Rosie with Tanev-Lowry, which I think is a good fit.
Lemieux I almost feel like they are auditioning him for a trade. No point sending him down.

Defense
Morrissey-Buff
Niku-Trouba
Kulikov-Myers
Chiarot
 

10Ducky10

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If Niku could clear the net front like Chiarot okay but I still play Niku on the farm...
 
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ecolad

Registered User
Nov 17, 2015
1,068
1,687
Start with pairs, and build from there...

Scheifele-Wheeler (if only because Maurice won't break them up)
Connor-Laine (Connor complements Laine with a more direct game through seams and puck retrieval)
Copp-Lowry (not sure why exactly, but they just click in a shutdown role)
Little-Perreault (Perreault makes every line better and he and Little have been very effective)

Now, let's go crazy...

Petan-Scheifele-Wheeler (have played on 25 minutes together, but crushed competition)

Connor-Roslovic-Laine (time to see if Roslovic can drive an offensive line?)

Perreault-Little-Ehlers (crushed competition in the past, can play against tough competition)

Copp-Lowry-Appleton (Appleton gives the line a bit more skill and finish)

Like the thinking here Whileee. The only additional thought I have is this -Roslovic might play much better with at least one winger who exhibited the proto-typical power forward style of play. In particular one who instinctively knew when and where to aggressively position themselves around the front of the net when Roslo had the puck. I say this only because of how Roslo played so well with Tkachuk when in world junior hockey ( indeed , often being seen as the one who stirred the drink on the line).:nod:
 

JetsFan815

Registered User
Jan 16, 2012
19,119
23,871
When the Jets are down a goal or two in the 3rd, I would like us to roll the following unit:

Connor-Scheifele-Wheeler
Laine-Buff

The "Avengers assemble" unit of the Jets when a goal is needed.
 

nippanappa

Registered User
Nov 26, 2018
96
198
It seems clear now that Maurice isn't breaking up Scheifele-Wheeler combo and is eager to put Connor with them every chance he gets. That leaves us ELL, but I would like to see Ehlers-Copp-Laine reunited (Once Copp is back) to see if that works as good as it did few games last year. That leaves Little with a tough spot though, and I've liked his play this year.

Maybe we'll see Laine playing with Scheifele next year, or in few years, or after Wheeler's contract, or...
 
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10Ducky10

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Spread the wealth...

Copper Scheif Laine
Tanev Little Wheeler
KC Roslo Ehlers
MP Lowry Appleton
 

kelsier

Registered User
Aug 17, 2013
4,280
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I think a lot of us have been dreaming about what it would look if they for instance tried Connor - Scheifele - Laine or even Connor - Roslovic - Laine inatead of the usual CWS & ELL that we've been forced to swallow for million times over, but everyone probably by now can realise that is never going to happen and the Jets management breaking up Scheifele and Wheelers is as distant dream as climbing the Mount Everest without any gear or supplies. I don't even know why bother with the lines discussion because it's the same old no matter what unless injury happens. The Jets coaching management is utterly incapable of trying anything new unless they have no other choice. I completely despise the ELL and there's no reason whatsover to even try that anymore (completely opposite in fact), yet it's the best they can come up with.
 

nippanappa

Registered User
Nov 26, 2018
96
198
I think a lot of us have been dreaming about what it would look if they for instance tried Connor - Scheifele - Laine or even Connor - Roslovic - Laine inatead of the usual CWS & ELL that we've been forced to swallow for million times over, but everyone probably by now can realise that is never going to happen and the Jets management breaking up Scheifele and Wheelers is as distant dream as climbing the Mount Everest without any gear or supplies. I don't even know why bother with the lines discussion because it's the same old no matter what unless injury happens. The Jets coaching management is utterly incapable of trying anything new unless they have no other choice. I completely despise the ELL and there's no reason whatsover to even try that anymore (completely opposite in fact), yet it's the best they can come up with.
Well put together, sums up my feelings pretty closely too.

It's a weird situation - Jets is a winning team with a great record now second season in a row. Many of our players are fighting for top spots in scoring and goals inside the league. It kind of feels stupid to hope for line changes with the record we have, but I personally feel we could reach for even better results.

I have to admit that I don't follow other teams nearly as much as I watch Jets, but in my opinion Jets have the talent and depth unseen in any other team. We have top caliber forwards with Scheifele, Wheeler, Connor, Laine and Ehlers (honestly look at that!), great depth pieces with Lowry, Perreault, Little and Copp, talented youngsters with Roslovic, Appleton and Vesalainen. Also we have three awesome defencemen with Morrissey, Byfuglien and Trouba that are well in discussion with the best defencemen around the league.

Regarding the previous, I just can't help but wonder why the coach and the management don't want to even try some of the most obvious offensive combinations to see if they could produce. (Scheifele and Wheeler haven't played apart of each other in 2 years!) Who knows, maybe Laine would totally slow down Scheifele's 5-on-5 production, and maybe Little would score even less points with Wheeler, but we simply can't know if we don't try things out.

I understand we don't touch the winning team and we shouldn't but there are moments inside the games where we are losing, there are losing streaks in regular season and there are losing streaks in playoffs (Vegas, who remembers?) where it just feels weird not to try things out. I hope the Jets keep winning as a team and I truly feel we have what it takes to bring Stanley Cup to Winnipeg but I'm not 100% confident with our currents lines.
 
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kelsier

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Aug 17, 2013
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Well put together, sums up my feelings pretty closely too.

It's a weird situation - Jets is a winning team with a great record now second season in a row. Many of our players are fighting for top spots in scoring and goals inside the league. It kind of feels stupid to hope for line changes with the record we have, but I personally feel we could reach for even better results.

I have to admit that I don't follow other teams nearly as much as I watch Jets, but in my opinion Jets have the talent and depth unseen in any other team. We have top caliber forwards with Scheifele, Wheeler, Connor, Laine and Ehlers (honestly look at that!), great depth pieces with Lowry, Perreault, Little and Copp, talented youngsters with Roslovic, Appleton and Vesalainen. Also we have three awesome defencemen with Morrissey, Byfuglien and Trouba that are well in discussion with the best defencemen around the league.

Regarding the previous, I just can't help but wonder why the coach and the management don't want to even try some of the most obvious offensive combinations to see if they could produce. (Scheifele and Wheeler haven't played apart of each other in 2 years!) Who knows, maybe Laine would totally slow down Scheifele's 5-on-5 production, and maybe Little would score even less points with Wheeler, but we simply can't know if we don't try things out.

I understand we don't touch the winning team and we shouldn't but there are moments inside the games where we are losing, there are losing streaks in regular season and there are losing streaks in playoffs (Vegas, who remembers?) where it just feels weird not to try things out. I hope the Jets keep winning as a team and I truly feel we have what it takes to bring Stanley Cup to Winnipeg but I'm not 100% confident with our currents lines.

Yeah, the Jets are a winning team with insane depth and absolutely lethal powerplay. This added with pretty good defence and excellent goalkeeping gives a lot of room to do plenty of things and dysfuctional and non-productive second line won't prevent the team from winning the games. You only have to look into last season and how they could afford to overlook all the problems and still win games with lines that were far from being optimal. Little is no longer second line calibre center offensively and when you add Ehlers into the mix, who isn't exactly a playmaking winger, that leaves Laine to having to work for his own scoring chances. Meanwhile in the first line Scheifele has Wheelers feeding him and Connor scoring goals and creating scoring chances should one of them have a bad day.

Again if we look into last year and Stastny joining the line up, things suddenly started to happen and the team had two productive lines when ELL was dismantled. Moving on to 18-19 they just decided that the ELL would've overcome their issues and somehow be great, yet obviously that wasn't going to happen. The line got pretty quickly separated and everyone started to find their games again. Later Laine got promoted back to second line with Little with someone coming up with the idea of switching Ehlers with Connor (probably not even Maurice) and while after we have Laine scoring five goals, Connor playing great hockey and Little somehow keeping up with the game. Now all of the sudden obviously due to one period of hockey where Connor scores while playing with S & W, Maurice thinks the trio would be the way forward. Yet they struggle to even get the two points against the Hawks and naturally ELL looks as crap as ever.

Well obviously they finally give Laine ice time to provide at least some reason to sign with the team after ELC expires, but keeping him as far away as possible from Scheifele for instance. Refusing to even explore any avenues which do not include S & W being intact and instead of seeing what other close-to-ready youngsters like Roslovic could do given a chance, they rather just force the ELL. Of course they have to look long term and making sure they can afford to sign all these youngsters so as long as they're winning majority of the games, it really doesn't even matter all that much whether the lines are optimized to provide best possible results. However like you pointed out, once the playoffs arrive they'll have no clue how to mix the deck and avoid getting shutdown, just like last time around. Just due to the stubbornness, lack of imagination and creativity of the coaching staff.
 

10Ducky10

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Yeah, the Jets are a winning team with insane depth and absolutely lethal powerplay. This added with pretty good defence and excellent goalkeeping gives a lot of room to do plenty of things and dysfuctional and non-productive second line won't prevent the team from winning the games. You only have to look into last season and how they could afford to overlook all the problems and still win games with lines that were far from being optimal. Little is no longer second line calibre center offensively and when you add Ehlers into the mix, who isn't exactly a playmaking winger, that leaves Laine to having to work for his own scoring chances. Meanwhile in the first line Scheifele has Wheelers feeding him and Connor scoring goals and creating scoring chances should one of them have a bad day.

Again if we look into last year and Stastny joining the line up, things suddenly started to happen and the team had two productive lines when ELL was dismantled. Moving on to 18-19 they just decided that the ELL would've overcome their issues and somehow be great, yet obviously that wasn't going to happen. The line got pretty quickly separated and everyone started to find their games again. Later Laine got promoted back to second line with Little with someone coming up with the idea of switching Ehlers with Connor (probably not even Maurice) and while after we have Laine scoring five goals, Connor playing great hockey and Little somehow keeping up with the game. Now all of the sudden obviously due to one period of hockey where Connor scores while playing with S & W, Maurice thinks the trio would be the way forward. Yet they struggle to even get the two points against the Hawks and naturally ELL looks as crap as ever.

Well obviously they finally give Laine ice time to provide at least some reason to sign with the team after ELC expires, but keeping him as far away as possible from Scheifele for instance. Refusing to even explore any avenues which do not include S & W being intact and instead of seeing what other close-to-ready youngsters like Roslovic could do given a chance, they rather just force the ELL. Of course they have to look long term and making sure they can afford to sign all these youngsters so as long as they're winning majority of the games, it really doesn't even matter all that much whether the lines are optimized to provide best possible results. However like you pointed out, once the playoffs arrive they'll have no clue how to mix the deck and avoid getting shutdown, just like last time around. Just due to the stubbornness, lack of imagination and creativity of the coaching staff.
Little is tied for 47th for centers. That makes him a bona fide 2C offensively so you are, yet again wrong. Oh yeah, he is better defensively than most of the centers above him.
 

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