We are basically coming to the end of the exhibition part of the schedule, and the team should have it's kinks worked out by the time they get back to EDM next week.
The 4th line is coming into view with Shore at center and Archie on his correct wing. That's the benefit of Neal coming back in as he prefers LW. Chiasson and Haas can rotate in to rest Neal when needed and keep Shore fresh and playing like he has this past week. Khaira is pretty much done as an Oiler.
L3 is the biggest worry right now but it needs time for Turris and JP to sort themselves out. Turris reminds me of Strome before we traded him right now so give it time. Good to get Ennis back (remember he had a very serious injury in the play-in) and Nygard can rotate in for him while gets up to speed. I'm not worried about effort with Turris so I'm willing to be patient.
L2 just needs to give Kahun more time to settle in. Numbers are good.
L1 is OK but a work in progress. I still think RNH is wasted with McDavid and is better suited to Drai. Kass is a good part-time guy but not an every day 1RW. So I'm happy they are slowly working JP in at 1RW and on the PP. Expect this to continue with Kass also getting time on L3. It seems pretty clear to me that he's a late bloomer in many ways and giving up on him could be seen as a huge mistake down the line.
I like Lars-KK as a shutdown pair but would get Nurse-Barrie together soon. Then we could rotate Russell (who played really well last night) Bear, Jones, Bouch and Lags. The idea of a Jones-Roslovic trades has some merit. I'm also not at all surprised that Bear is struggling a bit and would get him easier minutes this season if at all possible.
Koskinen starts again tomorrow, and if we win that game and Sunday, then I definitely give Skinner a start in the 2nd game against WPG since that buys Koskinen 3 days off .
