Line Combos: HFPens Decides - 3rd Defense Pairing

[Randy Butternubs]

Current lineup as per HFPens:

Zucker (100%)-Crosby-Kapanen (77%)
Guentzel (66%)-Malkin-Rust (97%)
McCann (94%)-Blueger (67%)-Tanev (59%)
hhh-iii-jjj
lll

Dumoulin (100%)-Letang
Matheson (56%)-Marino
ooo-ppp
qqq-rrr

Jarry-DeSmith

Poll #9 - Who do you want on the third defense pairing? Select two.

Poll will be open for a few days, unless it is a blowout.

Blueger to center McCann and Tanev.

In this poll, vote for the players you want on the third pairing. Depending on the outcomes I may have a follow up poll on this.


Some assumptions and rules:

1. You are to vote for what you want to see -- not what you expect the coaches to do. This is for the opening day lineup. Yes, it'll change throughout the season.
2. Crosby and Malkin are the top two centers.
3. Jarry is the starter and DeSmith is the backup.
4. ZAR will be on the IR to start the season. This means he will not be listed as an option in any of the polls.
5. In the top 4, defenseman will not play on their "off" side.
6. I will not be listing players for positions they have not played at the NHL level. For example, I will not be listing Tanev as an option for the third line center.
7. Due to the amount of one-way contracts, I will not be including Poulin and POJ (or other prospects) as voting options. Feel free to write them in as a vote, though. [okay, I guess I lied about Poulin not being listed]
8. A majority vote is not needed to win. But we may have runoff polls if I deem the numbers to be too close.

Let me know of questions or concerns.

Previous threads:

Line Combos: - HFPens Decides - 20/21 Version
Line Combos: - HFPens Decides - Jake Guentzel
Line Combos: - HFPens Decides - Third Line Center
Line Combos: - HFPens Decides - Marino's Partner
Line Combos: - HFPens Decides - Give Sid a RW
Line Combos: - HFPens Decides - Letang's Partner
Line Combos: - HFPens Decides - Zucker
Line Combos: - HFPens Decides - Rust
Line Combos: - HFPens Decides - 3rd Line Wingers

Click to read more...

 

[Gurglesons]

Petts - Ruh is a great 3rd pairing.

 

[BHD]

Pete with either Ruh or Ceci. Riikola could make things interesting though.

 

[Tacitus Kilgore]

Riikola needs to play a consistent amount of games. Man's been shafted since he got here, give em a chance. He can throw a big hit and has a good slapper

 

[CheckingLineCenter]

If Riikola is in it means he’s playing out of his mind well, so I voted for him.

 

[Tacitus Kilgore]

Also I would like to add that Pettersson is almost too good for the bottom pair imo. If he plays near to or up to his potential, then he is a great asset there

 

[Tom Hanks]

Went Riikola. Pettersson is a good D man and would be a good partner for him. Both are capable of the off side position

 

[Andy99]

Riikola on the right side is a ? ...people underselling Ruh there...as far as I know rn, Ruh is the better RD...don’t think we have many facts to assess Riikola there at the NHL level, so I selected Ruh, who’s a better player than many on here give him credit for...

 

[K Fleur]

Petts/Ruh

Don’t want to break up our elite 4th pairing- Riikola/Owner’s box nachos.

 

[Tom Hanks]

Petts/Ruh

Don’t want to break up our elite 4th pairing- Riikola/Owner’s box nachos.

 

[Randy Butternubs]

@BHD @K Fleur why'd you only vote for one person?

I now see you've voted for two, K Fleur. Thanks!

 

[NMK11]

Went with Riikola, but almost went Ruh. He's a solid 6/7 guy and would be playing on his strong side so sort of seems the safe pick for a defensive minded pairing. But I really want to see what Riikola can do with a stable partner and reliable ice time.

 

[K Fleur]

@BHD @K Fleur why'd you only vote for one person?

I now see you've voted for two, K Fleur. Thanks!

No problem officer.

 

[BHD]

@Randy Butternubs

Neither Ruhwedel or Ceci do much for me. Ruh isn’t anything special and Ceci is what he is. One of them would have to really blow it for me to opt for the other. Maybe Petes-Riikola is a possibility...

EDIT: it appears I’m not the only one who thinks they could be something.

 

[Night Shift]

Riding the C3 Cody train baby.

 

[BHD]

Is he a first round talent? No. Should he play on the top pair? No. However, I’m not going to write him off yet. Schultz was considered a spare part are being misused by the Oilers. I wouldn’t go as to say that means Ceci will find his game here, but it could happen.

 

[Peat]

@Randy Butternubs

Neither Ruhwedel or Ceci do much for me. Ruh isn’t anything special and Ceci is what he is. One of them would have to really blow it for me to opt for the other. Maybe Petes-Riikola is a possibility...

EDIT: it appears I’m not the only one who thinks they could be something.

I'd be pretty interested in seeing it. Actually, I might change my vote. Pettersson-Ruh is the combo there I trust most, hence my current vote, but start of the season, why not swing big on seeing if higher ceiling options work out? Ruh's a useful dude but his ceiling is going nowhere.

 

[BHD]

I'd be pretty interested in seeing it. Actually, I might change my vote. Pettersson-Ruh is the combo there I trust most, hence my current vote, but start of the season, why not swing big on seeing if higher ceiling options work out? Ruh's a useful dude but his ceiling is going nowhere.

Definitely. You know what you’re getting with both of them.

 

[Zirakzigil]

Petts and Cough drop.

 

[AuroraBorealis]

Riikola needs to play a consistent amount of games. Man's been shafted since he got here, give em a chance. He can throw a big hit and has a good slapper

Not to mention fast, good at sticking to his check, breaking up odd-man rushes and backdoor plays.

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Guess I'll go with Riikola - Joseph.

Not a fan of wasting young talent, even if he's playing the opposite side. Not really interested in worrying about his development until he's 26 or whatever. He won't make any difference by then. It'll be too late. They need him now, while the Pens are still a playoff team.

I got no problems throwing Matheson or Ceci into the line-up if they have a great camp, but I'm skeptical.

 

[Gurglesons]

Not to mention fast, good at sticking to his check, breaking up odd-man rushes and backdoor plays.

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Guess I'll go with Riikola - Joseph.

Not a fan of wasting young talent, even if he's playing the opposite side. Not really interested in worrying about his development until he's 26 or whatever. He won't make any difference by then. It'll be too late. They need him now, while the Pens are still a playoff team.

I got no problems throwing Matheson or Ceci into the line-up if they have a great camp, but I'm skeptical.

Lol.

 

[Tacitus Kilgore]

Lol.

Compelling

 

[Gurglesons]

Compelling

Why are we playing our best prospect on defense on his off side?

Why are we not insulating POJ?

Why are we sitting Pettersson?

 

[Tom Hanks]

Not to mention fast, good at sticking to his check, breaking up odd-man rushes and backdoor plays.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Guess I'll go with Riikola - Joseph.

Not a fan of wasting young talent, even if he's playing the opposite side. Not really interested in worrying about his development until he's 26 or whatever. He won't make any difference by then. It'll be too late. They need him now, while the Pens are still a playoff team.

I got no problems throwing Matheson or Ceci into the line-up if they have a great camp, but I'm skeptical.

Did you miss the hyphen? He didn’t resign.

 

[AuroraBorealis]

Why are we playing our best prospect on defense on his off side?

Why are we not insulating POJ?

Why are we sitting Pettersson?

A) We have no space on the left side. Rutherford acquired Matheson for no reason. Riikola's too good to be eating nachos. I value players abilities over which side they play. Good players can adjust over time. If the combo doesn't work then you swap their sides and see if that yields better results.
B) He is being insulated by playing with a responsible player like Riikola in this scenario. I'm sorry so many people on this board fail to see how rarely Riikola gets scored on. But I see it.
C) I never said we sit Pettersson. This poll boxed me in. My 2nd pairing is Pettersson - Marino.

If you took a second to read my post (instead of jumping straight to passive-aggression) then you'd see I mentioned Ceci and Matheson being extras, unless they earned their spot with a great camp. So the natural conclusion there is Pettersson being on the 2nd pair. But as always, your priority is not to discuss but rather to get your rocks off by degrading others.