2018/2019 Lineup Thread

simon IC

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I'm not even worried this year. I love Fabbri and hope more than anything that he returns to form, but just in case he doesn't, the Blues could still roll:

Maroon-O'Reilly-Tarasenko
Schwartz-Schenn-Kyrou
Steen-Bozak-Perron
Barbashev-Thomas-Jaskin

Kyrou could essentially jump in there and replace him. Let me repeat: we'd be missing a top 6 forward and we STILL would have the depth to push either Thomas or Maroon to the 4th line. That is damn good. Even if Kyrou didn't make the team, you still have a legitimate group of 12:

Maroon-O'Reilly-Tarasenko
Schwartz-Schenn-Perron
Steen-Thomas-Bozak
Soshnikov-Barbashev-Jaskin

That's with no Fabbri or Kyrou, two pretty dynamic forwards (or at least the potential to be)... Armstrong really is covering his ass this year, Yeo can't screw this up.
Ha ha. You give him too much credit. :)
 

Robb_K

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I would start with this lineup until an injury and/or when Kyrou is ready:

Fabbri-O'Reilly-Tarasenko
Schwartz-Schenn-Perron
Steen-Bozak-Maroon
Barbashev-Thomas-Jaskin

When Kyrou is ready, I'd use this, with movement of the others depending upon injuries, need for rest, and how players were working together in the lineup:

Fabbri-O'Reilly-Tarasenko
Schwartz-Schenn-Perron
Steen-Bozak-Kyrou
Maroon-Thomas-Jaskin

The question is whether or not Perron and Maroon are so much better on LW than RW that they shouldn't play RW, and whether or not Bozak should be moved to RW on a higher line, after Thomas is ready to be the regular 3rd Line centre. We don't want to have to play Steen on RW.
 

STL fan in MN

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Aug 16, 2007
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I typically don’t bother with lines in the middle of the summer. It’s all going to depend on who meshes with who and with so many new faces, that’s hard to guess now. I’m sure Yeo will try a ton of different things in camp to see what works and what doesn’t.

And then of course he’ll try tons of more combos throughout the year. Hopefully he doesn’t switch things up as much as Hitch did but things get stale fast and with injuries, lines simply have to get juggled sometimes.

That said, I’m just happy he appears to have a lot of good options and not be forced to play guys like Paajarvi, Jaskin or Sundqvist in the top-9.

The Blues gave 10 legit top-9 players. So it’ll be interesting to see which one doesn’t secure a top-9 spot. Although again, it wouldn’t be surprising if 1 or more is injured at the same time, somewhat taking care of that problem.

And I could see injuries being an issue. Lots of guys coming off of surgeries. Fabbri of course. Maroon had back surgery. Tarasenko’s shoulder. Even Thomas with the high ankle sprain. And Steen’s probably due for another injury too, right? Will all of these guys be 100% by late Sept/early Oct and stay 100%?

The other issue I see is that there’s still a lack of true RWs on the roster. Lots of good forwards but most wingers have shown in their careers to be better at LW than RW. That means that 2 of Schwartz, Steen, Fabbri, Perron and Maroon will likely have to flip to RW. Perron’s mostly played RW here before and Maroon can play both well so those would be my guesses as to who flips to RW but it’s a minor thing I take issue with.

And now I’m going to do what I said I wouldn’t and throw some lines together because, hey, this is a lot more fun to do when there’s so many good options!

Schwartz-Schenn-Tarasenko
Steen-O’Reilly-Perron
Fabbri-Bozak-Maroon
Jaskin/Soshnikov-Barbashev-Thomas
Sosh/Jaskin, Thorburn/Sundqvist

I could see them keeping Sundqvist if they want to swap him in and out with Barbs as 4th life C but I could also see them keeping Thorburn if they want that toughness factor. Should be lots of fighting for jobs in camp. And maybe Nolan shows better than Thorburn. Or Sanford comes out hot...lots of options. Which is great for once as they should be able to weather the eventual injuries much better now.
 

JoshFromMO

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Fabbri always throws his body around checking, he actually checks quite hard for a smaller player.
I remember one time in OT he went for a huge check against a much bigger guy, threw his whole body into it and still got out muscled on it. We lost possession and the other team scored on it lol. I remember being more proud of Fabbs for not caring how much bigger the other guy was and still played the body
 
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Mike Liut

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Schwartz - Schenn - Kyrou
Maroon - ROR - Tarasenko
Fabbri - Bozak - Perron
Steen - Thomas - Jaskin/Soshnikov/ Sanford​
 

wannabebluesplayer

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Apr 16, 2012
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Schwartz - Schenn - Kyrou
Maroon - ROR - Tarasenko
Fabbri - Bozak - Perron
Steen - Thomas - Jaskin/Soshnikov/ Sanford​

Are you assuming Thorburn will be waived/sent down? I mean, I like your lineup here as I think Kyrou is the perfect compliment to Schenn and Schwartz. I'd like to see Thomas with a little more offensive firepower around him, so maybe swapping Steen and Fabbri. Plus, Bozak is a pretty well known for poor defense, or at least not caring about defense as much as he should.

Can someone please explain why I keep seeing Maroon on O'Reilly and Tarasenko's wing? Wouldn't he basically be playing the same role O'Reilly is on the offensive side of the puck? Why not Perron, who's more comfortable on the left, or Fabbri. Those two seem to fit more on that left wing spot than Maroon. Maroon or Steen, to me, are the perfect left wingers for Thomas. I'm not saying it's a bad choice either. I just think he'd be a good guy to put with Thomas. I'd almost put together a line of Steen, Bozak, and Soshnikov with Maroon, Thomas, and Perron or Fabbri on the 4th line. That line makes me think of Fabbri Stastny Brouwer from 15/16.
 

The Note in MI

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Thomas will do well with a LHS that can finish, and plays well in front of the net a la Brandon Saigeon and Matt Strome two guys he had most success with in Hamilton. He likes to make seam passes from down low and cross ice from RW to LW. That to me is Schwartz, Maroon, and Fabbri in order of best fit and down.

I want to see
Fabbri ROR Tarasenko.
Schwartz Schenn Kyrou
Maroon Thomas Perron
Steen Bozak Jaskin

That to me is a team of two firsts, a second and a third line.
 

pawnjohn

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Jan 27, 2017
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Can someone please explain why I keep seeing Maroon on O'Reilly and Tarasenko's wing? Wouldn't he basically be playing the same role O'Reilly is on the offensive side of the puck? Why not Perron, who's more comfortable on the left, or Fabbri. Those two seem to fit more on that left wing spot than Maroon. Maroon or Steen, to me, are the perfect left wingers for Thomas. I'm not saying it's a bad choice either. I just think he'd be a good guy to put with Thomas. I'd almost put together a line of Steen, Bozak, and Soshnikov with Maroon, Thomas, and Perron or Fabbri on the 4th line. That line makes me think of Fabbri Stastny Brouwer from 15/16.


I believe it comes from a combination of a few different factors that have led to many putting that line together. Many want to keep Schwartz-Schenn together and also want to have Tarasenko on a different line to balance out our scoring a bit, so that takes Schwartz out as his LW.

Many are worried about Fabbri coming back and don't want to ease him back in slowly and don't want the pressure of penciling him in a top-6 roll right away. At least to start, this eliminates him as the LW option (as least in this sense).

That leaves Steen and Maroon left as options for Tarasenko's LW. A lot of people want Steen to be paired with Thomas in order to help him with the defensive responsibilities to start the season. So that pretty much leaves Maroon.

There is also a stylistic benefit that some believe would lead to good chemistry for Maroon-Tarasenko as well. Being a bigger guy and a player that will drive to the front of the net, there is the hope that it will create more space for Tarasenko to do his thing. He also provides the net front presence/screen that can help block the goalies vision and allow Tarasenko to pick corners/openings. Considering the fact that Tarasenko likes to create his own opportunities off the rush/half wall, they may be right in thinking Maroon could be a good fit here. This also gives Maroon the ability to bang in rebounds on the shots that the goalie does save.

And of course, many want Maroon out there to help "protect" Tarasenko as well.
 

The Note in MI

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I can see Blais making the lineup out of camp again this year over Kyrou.

Schwartz Schenn Perron
Fabbri ROR Tarasenko
Maroon Bozak Steen
Blais Thomas Jaskin- I can see this line being very solid
Sosh/Barby

Bye bye Sundy/Thorbs
 

Vincenzo Arelliti

He Can't Play Center
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Thomas will do well with a LHS that can finish, and plays well in front of the net a la Brandon Saigeon and Matt Strome two guys he had most success with in Hamilton. He likes to make seam passes from down low and cross ice from RW to LW. That to me is Schwartz, Maroon, and Fabbri in order of best fit and down.

I want to see
Fabbri ROR Tarasenko.
Schwartz Schenn Kyrou
Maroon Thomas Perron
Steen Bozak Jaskin

That to me is a team of two firsts, a second and a third line.
Thomas had most of his success in London. I’d say he’s just as good if not better with speedsters that can finish a la Formenton (I would love to acquire him from Ottawa). Here’s to hoping Thomas and Kyrou are both impressive enough to get quality linemates.
 

The Note in MI

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Thomas had most of his success in London. I’d say he’s just as good if not better with speedsters that can finish a la Formenton (I would love to acquire him from Ottawa). Here’s to hoping Thomas and Kyrou are both impressive enough to get quality linemates.
He played less with formenton and more with miletic, Jones and Pu. As far as I can recall at least

Also edited to add that formenton plays a north south to the net game. He’s fast but he also plays in the crease
 

Vincenzo Arelliti

He Can't Play Center
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He played less with formenton and more with miletic, Jones and Pu. As far as I can recall at least

Also edited to add that formenton plays a north south to the net game. He’s fast but he also plays in the crease
I tried to find info on lines and couldn’t. The games I watched Formenton was moved between the second and first line depending on how they played Pu. Either way, you’re right about Formenton’s playstyle.
 

kimzey59

Registered User
Aug 16, 2003
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Honestly, I think too many of you guys are trying to make the 4th line into a scoring unit and ignoring the need for defensive play and size/grit. I get that we have some good defensive forwards in our top 9, but the 4th line still has to be able to eat some minutes or our top guys are going to be completely run down by the end of the year.

Schwartz-Schenn-Perron
Maroon-ROR-Tarasenko
Steen-Bozak-X1
X2-Sundqvist-Jaskin

x1- Camp competition between Fabbri, Thomas and Kyrou. Best scorer get the spot.
x2- Camp competition between Thorburn, Barbashev, Soshnikov, Blais, Nolan, Stevens and Flynn. Best grinder gets the spot.

Press Box roles go to the runner up in both competitions.

I wouldn't be surprised if Army makes one or 2 more 4th line/AHL fodder type additions(personally, I'm looking at guys like Kelly, Ward, Moore, Mitchell, Winnik and Wingels that teams seem to be shying away from due to age) after Eddy gets signed.
 

Novacain

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Feb 24, 2012
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Honestly, I think too many of you guys are trying to make the 4th line into a scoring unit and ignoring the need for defensive play and size/grit. I get that we have some good defensive forwards in our top 9, but the 4th line still has to be able to eat some minutes or our top guys are going to be completely run down by the end of the year.

Schwartz-Schenn-Perron
Maroon-ROR-Tarasenko
Steen-Bozak-X1
X2-Sundqvist-Jaskin

x1- Camp competition between Fabbri, Thomas and Kyrou. Best scorer get the spot.
x2- Camp competition between Thorburn, Barbashev, Soshnikov, Blais, Nolan, Stevens and Flynn. Best grinder gets the spot.

Press Box roles go to the runner up in both competitions.

I wouldn't be surprised if Army makes one or 2 more 4th line/AHL fodder type additions(personally, I'm looking at guys like Kelly, Ward, Moore, Mitchell, Winnik and Wingels that teams seem to be shying away from due to age) after Eddy gets signed.

That 4th line is just freaking gross, Sunqvist didn't show nearly enough to be penciled in for much of anything other then AHL depth. Any lineup with him in it but Thomas or Fabbri not is a bad lineup.

If the league let us run 5 lines next year, Sunny wouldn't be in my top 15. Just, no.
 
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STL fan in MN

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Honestly, I think too many of you guys are trying to make the 4th line into a scoring unit and ignoring the need for defensive play and size/grit. I get that we have some good defensive forwards in our top 9, but the 4th line still has to be able to eat some minutes or our top guys are going to be completely run down by the end of the year.

Schwartz-Schenn-Perron
Maroon-ROR-Tarasenko
Steen-Bozak-X1
X2-Sundqvist-Jaskin

x1- Camp competition between Fabbri, Thomas and Kyrou. Best scorer get the spot.
x2- Camp competition between Thorburn, Barbashev, Soshnikov, Blais, Nolan, Stevens and Flynn. Best grinder gets the spot.

Press Box roles go to the runner up in both competitions.

I wouldn't be surprised if Army makes one or 2 more 4th line/AHL fodder type additions(personally, I'm looking at guys like Kelly, Ward, Moore, Mitchell, Winnik and Wingels that teams seem to be shying away from due to age) after Eddy gets signed.

I pretty much agree with this philosophy and agree that this is likely along the lines of what Yeo is thinking.

One thing I see though is that I think we’re going to miss Brodz a lot more than many seem to realize. He was only a 4C but he was a good one. Sunny is a big downgrade IMO. The other option is Barbs but I’m curious if he can play that sort of role well enough. To me, Barbs appears to be getting pushed out of this lineup. He better show up a lot hungrier than last year if he wants to earn an NHL job.

I suppose the other 4C option would be Thomas but I question if they’d want him there. Maybe it’d work though.

But yes, the 4th line will still need to be able to grind.

And a lot of our PKers went out the door so they’ll really have to figure out who their main PK forwards will be. That may help in determining who earns those final spots - if someone can show they can be a top PKer, that could give him the edge even if another guy maybe adds a little more offensive pop.
 

stl76

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I'm interested to see if Maroon gets a look with Schwartz + Schenn...think he would compliment those two nicely.
 

kimzey59

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That 4th line is just freaking gross, Sunqvist didn't show nearly enough to be penciled in for much of anything other then AHL depth. Any lineup with him in it but Thomas or Fabbri not is a bad lineup.

If the league let us run 5 lines next year, Sunny wouldn't be in my top 15. Just, no.

Sundqvist is admittedly an offensive blackhole; but he's big, physical and decent on the PK.
JMO but I think that gives him an edge on a lot of the guys being penciled in by some people.

And frankly; I don't want Thomas to be anywhere near a 4th line role. He doesn't have the body for it. If Thomas isn't playing in the top 9, send him back to Jrs so he can bulk up for another year(it didn't hurt Petro any).
Same thing for Kyrou and to a lesser extent Fabbri( I can see using Fabbri and Maroon as a 2nd line/4th line platoon; but Fabbri needs to be sheltered from defensive situations). IF you aren't going to use them as scorers; send them to the minors to continue getting their bodies NHL ready.

An NHL 4th line has a role to play. They have to be able to get the top 9 adequate rest, and that means at minimum they have to be defensively sound enough to log solid minutes(and ideally capable of doing time on a PK unit). Throwing untested rookies, fringe "skill" guys and recovering top 9 players onto one unit in the hopes that they provide some offense isn't the makeup of a good 4th line. That kind of line will be a massive defensive liability and won't be trusted nearly enough to get the top 9 off the ice. Unless you're OK with 5 or 6 forwards averaging 20+ minutes a night(which I am absolutely not in favor of), you need the 4th line to be capable logging some time( at least 10-13 minutes on a regular basis).

Of the actual candidates for the 4th line C spot; Sundqvist is leading the pack IMO.
Thomas is far too untested and doesn't play anything remotely resembling a grinders style of game.
Barbashev isn't good defensively and his drive is in question.
Nolan is every bit as much an offensive blackhole, and he is terrible at FO's.
I'm not convinced either of Stevens or Musil is NHL ready.

Sundqvist is admittedly terrible on offense: but I don't question his drive, defensive play or ability to be a PK specialist. I would certainly prefer a better option(maybe Sanford makes the switch to C and can handle the spot); but right now I think he's the most trustworthy player for the spot.
 
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Novacain

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Sundqvist is admittedly an offensive blackhole; but he's big, physical and decent on the PK.
JMO but I think that gives him an edge on a lot of the guys being penciled in by some people.

And frankly; I don't want Thomas to be anywhere near a 4th line role. He doesn't have the body for it. If Thomas isn't playing in the top 9, send him back to Jrs so he can bulk up for another year(it didn't hurt Petro any).
Same thing for Kyrou and to a lesser extent Fabbri( I can see using Fabbri and Maroon as a 2nd line/4th line platoon; but Fabbri needs to be sheltered from defensive situations). IF you aren't going to use them as scorers; send them to the minors to continue getting their bodies NHL ready.

An NHL 4th line has a role to play. They have to be able to get the top 9 adequate rest, and that means at minimum they have to be defensively sound enough to log solid minutes(and ideally capable of doing time on a PK unit). Throwing untested rookies, fringe "skill" guys and recovering top 9 players onto one unit in the hopes that they provide some offense isn't the makeup of a good 4th line. That kind of line will be a massive defensive liability and won't be trusted nearly enough to get the top 9 off the ice. Unless you're OK with 5 or 6 forwards averaging 20+ minutes a night(which I am absolutely not in favor of), you need the 4th line to be capable logging some time( at least 10-13 minutes on a regular basis).

Of the actual candidates for the 4th line C spot; Sundqvist is leading the pack IMO.
Thomas is far too untested and doesn't play anything remotely resembling a grinders style of game.
Barbashev isn't good defensively and his drive is in question.
Nolan is every bit as much an offensive blackhole, and he is terrible at FO's.
I'm not convinced either of Stevens or Musil is NHL ready.

Sundqvist is admittedly terrible on offense: but I don't question his drive, defensive play or ability to be a PK specialist. I would certainly prefer a better option(maybe Sanford makes the switch to C and can handle the spot); but right now I think he's the most trustworthy player for the spot.

For starter, any decision for Robert Thomas that is based on "We don't have room for him" is an atrocious call. The reason why sending Petro down wasn't a bad idea was because he wasn't one of our 6 best defensemen at the time, when our defense wasn't very good. Petro was a slow developer, Thomas hasn't been. Sending him to a pointless season in the OHL facing competition he is way too good for just hinders his develop it, not helps it. Also, the moment any of Bozak, O'Reilly, or Schenn get an injury you suddenly look like the biggest moron in the room by miles.

As for the PK question, first note: O'Reilly is going to be our main Penalty Killing forward most likely. He wasn't the main in Buffalo, but he was their most effective. And chances are O'Reilly will become our defacto top PK guy again. We also have Steen, Schwartz, and Schenn who have gotten decent PK time in the past who can fill in. Also, I wouldn't be shocked if Soshnikov or Jaskin get more PK time, and I'm more then cool with that. We have PK options still without having to go down the endless abyss of running Sunqvist out there. If we run into problems and find we absolutely have to have PK help, fine, call him up (it's not like he's getting picked up on waivers) but if we enter the season healthy and do something like send Thomas down or even scratch Barbashev (assuming Barbie comes in on time and in good shape this year) to play the player who was the 6th worst offensive forward in the NHL last year by Points per 60 minutes (of those with at least 400 minutes played), I will assume Yeo has lost his mind.
 
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Reality Czech

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Apr 17, 2017
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Steen - Thomas - Tarasenko
Schwartz - Schenn - Barbashev
Maroon - O'Reilly - Fabbri
Jaskin - Bozak - Perron

O'Reilly as 3C? Interesting. I'll give you bonus points for creativity. Barbashev higher on the depth chart than Perron and Fabbri? Bozak as 4C? I'm speechless.
 

Robb_K

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Apr 26, 2007
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Thomas had most of his success in London. I’d say he’s just as good if not better with speedsters that can finish a la Formenton (I would love to acquire him from Ottawa). Here’s to hoping Thomas and Kyrou are both impressive enough to get quality linemates.
I think that Thomas will be ready to centre The 3rd Line, after 20-30 games. But, I'd shelter him on The 4th Line, at first, to let him settle in, and get used to The NHL's speed and more intense, more frequent hard hitting, and also to get used to the greater demands on defence that the pro game has over Juniors. When he's ready for 3rd Line duties, he will get decent finishers (maybe Steen and Perron or even Bozak-moved over from centre.
 

Meatball

2018-19 Stanley Cup Champions! :3
Jul 1, 2014
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Perron-O'Reilly-Tarasenko

This would make a good 1st line. Perron can be the RHS to feed Tarasenko (they both like to cut to the middle). Plus, he's more comfortable on the left, is he not?
 

HighNote

Just one more Cup
Jul 1, 2014
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O'Reilly as 3C? Interesting. I'll give you bonus points for creativity. Barbashev higher on the depth chart than Perron and Fabbri? Bozak as 4C? I'm speechless.
How about this one:

Maroon - O'Reilly - Fabbri
Steen - Thomas - Tarasenko
Jaskin - Bozak - Perron
Schwartz - Schenn - Barbashev
 

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