GDT: Game 17: Montreal Canadiens vs Ottawa Senators 2/21/21 7:00pm EST SN, RDS, TSN 690

[zx81]

Sens will clog the neutral zone, Clod won't adjust...rinse and repeat...

Expect us to get 40 sog but the vast majority from the blue line. Murray will have it easy.

Predicted an Ottawa win 4-1 in the PGT yesterday.

The fact that we'll play on the road may help though.

To be honest I care less every game. I want changes.

 

[Runner77]

4 years of Claude and the team has been mediocre to bad the entire time . I’ve seen enough.

He's got to go. You can see why Bruins fans couldn't wait to find a sucker to take Julien off their hands.

 

[Milhouse40]

Tatar and Gallagher can battle for the 6th spot in the top 6.

Tatar Kotkaniemi Toffoli
Armia Danault Gallagher

Could also work.

Ideally we add a top 6/9 winger at some point this season, perhaps Caufield, and we have

Drouin Suzuki Anderson
_______ Kotkaniemi Toffoli
Tatar Danault Gallagher
Lehkonen Evan's Armia
Byron

Drouin - Suzuki - Anderson should not be a given anymore.

Drouin has 1 goal this season, 21 shot on goals.....that's less goals and shot than Evans.
In the last 7 games, he has 0 goal and 2 assists.
Suzuki ain't doing much better with 0 goal and 3 assists in those 7 games.
Anderson is having 5 goals, no assists.....but one of those goals is shorthanded and no goals in the last 3 games.

For me, the top 6 I would go with is:

Toffoli - Suzuki - Anderson
Tatar - Kotkaniemi - Gallagher

Put the 2 best wingers on the top line. Help Suzuki defensively with at least a winger really good in both zone.
Tatar- Gallagher always did well together, but not as 3rdish liner but as top 6.
And Danault is dragging their offensive output down this season.
Plus give more ice-time to KK with two good offensive wingers who can be trusted in both zone.

 

[26Mats]

Drouin - Suzuki - Anderson should not be a given anymore.

Drouin has 1 goal this season, 21 shot on goals.....that's less goals and shot than Evans.
In the last 7 games, he has 0 goal and 2 assists.
Suzuki ain't doing much better with 0 goal and 3 assists in those 7 games.
Anderson is having 5 goals, no assists.....but one of those goals is shorthanded and no goals in the last 3 games.

For me, the top 6 I would go with is:

Toffoli - Suzuki - Anderson
Tatar - Kotkaniemi - Gallagher

Put the 2 best wingers on the top line. Help Suzuki defensively with at least a winger really good in both zone.
Tatar- Gallagher always did well together, but not as 3rdish liner but as top 6.
And Danault is dragging their offensive output down this season.
Plus give more ice-time to KK with two good offensive wingers who can be trusted in both zone.

I like your top 6. But I still want us to have 3 lines that are an offensive threat. Drouin Danault Armia doesn't strike me as a viable line. While Danault is struggling this year, I think he can produce as he did the last 2 years. And we need the 3rd line.

If we go with your top 6 of the best 6 offensive players on the team, I think the best chemistry for the bottom 6 would be:

Byron Danault Lehkonen (fast, relentless forecheck, zip and zag line)
Drouin Evan's Armia (all have some skill to make plays together)

 

[Sterling Archer]

Not that Claude will ever do this but I’d go with:
Drouin Suzuki Anderson
Toffoli KK Gally
Tatar Danault Armia
Byron Evans Perry

Romanov Weber
Edmundson Petry
Chiarot Mete

 

[zx81]

tbere is something wrong with it when you are that slow.

Suzuki is defintely slower these days.
I don't know if it's because he's out of shape though.
I noticed that he often voluntarily slows down the play whe he controls the puck. I'm starting to think that he's trying to be too fancy.

He needs to simplify his game.

 

[zx81]

Not that Claude will ever do this but I’d go with:

Romanov Weber
Edmundson Petry
Chiarot Mete

I totally agree that Chiarot and Weber have to separated. Ultimately Chiarot should not even be in our top 6.

 

[WeThreeKings]

Danault has been outplayed by every center on the team. Even in your lines that we know Claude won't do, you should be putting him 4C.

 

[Milhouse40]

I like your top 6. But I still want us to have 3 lines that are an offensive threat. Drouin Danault Armia doesn't strike me as a viable line. While Danault is struggling this year, I think he can produce as he did the last 2 years. And we need the 3rd line.

If we go with your top 6 of the best 6 offensive players on the team, I think the best chemistry for the bottom 6 would be:

Byron Danault Lehkonen
Drouin Evan's Armia

I would still want 3 lines able to be dangerous offensively.....but right now, we don't have even one, so I would be happy with 2 lines instead of 3 to begin with.

But a 3rd line of Drouin - Danault - Perry could be something interesting to see if not use only as shutdown line...or I would dare say that I love Evans' play. So a 4th line of Drouin - Evans - Perry could also be something that would put some offensive touch on the bottom 6

 

[CHfan1]

Drouin - Suzuki - Anderson should not be a given anymore.

Drouin has 1 goal this season, 21 shot on goals.....that's less goals and shot than Evans.
In the last 7 games, he has 0 goal and 2 assists.
Suzuki ain't doing much better with 0 goal and 3 assists in those 7 games.
Anderson is having 5 goals, no assists.....but one of those goals is shorthanded and no goals in the last 3 games.

For me, the top 6 I would go with is:

Toffoli - Suzuki - Anderson
Tatar - Kotkaniemi - Gallagher

Put the 2 best wingers on the top line. Help Suzuki defensively with at least a winger really good in both zone.
Tatar- Gallagher always did well together, but not as 3rdish liner but as top 6.
And Danault is dragging their offensive output down this season.
Plus give more ice-time to KK with two good offensive wingers who can be trusted in both zone.

I can’t see Claude doing that, but I’d like to see it.

After last game though I’d like to see

Toffoli-KK-Anderson
Tatar-Suzuki-Gallagher

If they are really going to switch up their top 6

 

[Runner77]

 

[Sterling Archer]

Our team did well in the playoffs when Julien was out with the heart attack and Muller and Ducharme played the kids as top 2 centres. Our PP did best with Weber on the top of the dot with Petry as the QB and Romy as the 2nd PP QB. Why do we keep changing what works??
Play Suzuki and KK top 2 and put Weber back on the top of the dot. It’s not f***ing rocket science.

 

[Milhouse40]

I can’t see Claude doing that, but I’d like to see it.

After last game though I’d like to see

Toffoli-KK-Anderson
Tatar-Suzuki-Gallagher

If they are really going to switch up their top 6

Another good option, I thought about it.....but since Suzuki is the small center between the two, I went with the bigger winger with him. Both options are good.

 

[River Meadow]

The best there is, the best there was, and the best there ever will be - STOOTZLAH!

 

[Runner77]

 

[zx81]

What I find infuriating is how CJ is killing our entusiasm every year. From his first game with us in 2017 we started to be more boring without getting better results for it.

 

[DramaticGloveSave]

Would be nice if both Suzuki and KK could play well at the same time. Seems it’s always one and not the other.

 

[Halakitlikethat]

I don’t usually like to post mock lineups , especially with Claude when you know he isn’t going to change much of anything . I’d throw the lines right in the blender though, MT style

Drouin Suzuki Gallagher
Tatar Kk Anderson
Toffoli Evans Armia
Byron Danault Lehkonen

Romanov Weber
Edmundson Petry
Chiarot/Mete/Kulak ( would prefer to sit some of these guys and give Fleury a chance)

 

[Ozmodiar]

Would be nice if both Suzuki and KK could play well at the same time. Seems it’s always one and not the other.

lol
Even last night! ... Suzuki line had a strong start, then faded. KK’s line took over.

 

[Naslund]

Based on merit, effectiveness, chemistry and team balance, the lines should be:
Toffoli-KK-Anderson
Drouin-Suzuki-Armia
Tatar-Danault-Gallagher
Lehkonen-Evans-Byron

 

[Kobe Armstrong]

Need a win today, pretty much the whole team was awful yesterday, especially the defense. I'd like to see these lines

Tatar-Suzuki-Anderson
Drouin-Kotkaniemi-Toffoli
Lehkonen-Danault-Gallagher

Swap Tatar and Drouin if there's no chemistry.

Danault and Gallagher are playing like a 3rd line so might as well use them in that role, put them with Lehkonen and throw them out against other teams top lines.

 

[Habs]

my hockey coach always said, 'If the Centers are not producing, we need to change the lines because everything hinges around them'. I've found that to be true at every level. With suzuki and the rest of the C's struggling, juggle things up now sooner than later.

 

[OldCraig71]

He's got to go. You can see why Bruins fans couldn't wait to find a sucker to take Julien off their hands.

Yeah, I agree that it's time for him to go. Big changes have been made to this roster but yet we seem to be falling back into old familiar tendencies that are nullifying any gains we made to start the year.


There are no adjustments made when things have dried up, they seem hellbent on relying on strategies or line combos that are not working instead of trying to adapt. Why not give one of Suzuki or KK our best two forwards? Why not try it? Nope, no sir, we have to get Phil Danault going!

What if we fired Julien and Bergevin asked for the Flyers permission to talk to Therrien?

 

[OldCraig71]

my hockey coach always said, 'If the Centers are not producing, we need to change the lines because everything hinges around them'. I've found that to be true at every level. With suzuki and the rest of the C's struggling, juggle things up now sooner than later.

We need to move Anderson and Toffoli to their rightful place next to Phil Danault!

 

[HabsWhiteKnightLOL]

There’s no line to shutdown like against the Leafs but can we just please put Danault with Lehkonen and Armia. If he’s going to bring down wingers offensively, bring down ones that aren’t going to score anyways.

This , proof we suck at home where we have the last changes. So Danault playing against top pairer makes no god damn difference at all.