Smitty93
Registered User
- Dec 6, 2012
- 8,216
- 9,380
He has, but its not like he's a scrub on the RW. Krejci's possession numbers and advanced stats seem to be best when Coyle is on his RW and being that the 2nd line has been an concern for 3-4 years now, why not put him there? The advanced numbers say a trio of DeBrusk - Krejci - Coyle can been solid in possession and scoring chances.
I'm also not sure I'm following with Studnicka. You say its tough to throw him in because he's only played 2 NHL games (BTW McAvoy had zero when he jumped in during a playoff run), but if we lose a center he's the top choice to replace them? If you have the confidence to make him the top center replacement for injury, how can you not be confident in him being a #3C?
Going to focus on the Studnicka part. I don't think any of the other center options that they have are good enough to play top 9 C. I'd rather take my chances with Studnicka than bumping up Kuraly or Lindholm. The way I view it is if they need him in an emergency (i.e. Bergeron, Krejci, or Coyle injury), then it makes sense to add him to the lineup, but I think that they're not going to want to throw him in there unless they're desperate. I'd say it's a mixture of personal opinion and knowing how Cassidy and Sweeney operate.
With the Coyle thing, I'm more of a fan of spreading out talent in your lineup over stacking lines. I think it makes your team more difficult to defend.