Salary Cap: Salary Cap 2015: Olli Maatta to start season in AHL due to severe case of Gullibility

[Ogrezilla]

Ogre, McGuirk, I could be talking out of my ass. That's a possibility.

That disclaimer out of the way, I really do like the idea of loading Malkin and Crosby together - at least for some of the time. They have the best chemistry of any combo on the team, and they're elite talents.

I'm gonna stop you right here and say I strongly disagree. They defer to one another way too much when playing together.

That might make up for positional changes. It's at least something to think about during positional matchups. All they do is score goals and drive possession.

Over the course of their careers, when they've played together, they've recorded a GF60 of 4.68 and a CF60 of 67.45. When apart, Malkin records a GF60 of 2.99 and a CF60 of 57.74. For Crosby? 3.45 and 61.48.

Think back to those late 2000s Red Wings squads. Zetterberg (who, admittedly, is listed as a LW) and Datsyuk are better as Cs, sure. But, there were times when it made sense put them together in a playoff series.

Top Line: Malkin - Crosby - Hornqvist --> works like Zetterberg - Datsyuk - Holmstrom
Scoring Line: Perron - Bonino - Kessel --> limit the defensive starts for this group
Cycle Line: Plotnikov - Fehr - Bennett --> as the name suggests, generate offense off the cycle
Grind Line: Dupuis - Cullen - Rust --> defensive, balls-to-the-wall line

This is assuming Sprong is sent back to juniors - which I don't necessarily agree with. It would be fun to think of where he could slot up. Sprong makes so many smart decisions with the puck for someone his age. The lineup also assumes a Chris Kunitz trade, which is unlikely.

Some players could be swapped in and out. Maybe Fehr goes up with Perron and Kessel for a bigger defensive presence? I like the idea of Fehr on L3 though.

Of course, this combo may just work better:
Perron - Malkin - Kessel
Bonino - Crosby - Hornqvist
Plotnikov - Fehr - Bennett
Dupuis - Cullen - Rust

I think Malkin and Sid for a few shifts a game makes sense. They ARE a ridiculous good line when together simply because they are both so damn good. But the downgrade to the 2nd line would be far greater than the upgrade of the top line. Just forcing teams to deal with having one of them on the ice for so much of the game is a huge advantage that you just throw away if you play them together.

I wish we did it a bit more than we do after things like icing or before tv timeouts or to end the period. But I don't want it to be a regular thing. And even talking about double shifting them, I think I prefer double shifting them individually with the bottom 6 lines over double shifting them together. Throw a Bonino-Malkin-Sprong 3rd line and Cullen-Crosby-Rust 4th line on occasion. Or whoever is in our bottom 6.

 

[Ogrezilla]

I don't know. I'm not the GM, nor do I envy his job moving forward.

But we're gonna have to part with something significant to land the piece we need in order to fix the blueline, imo.

I think trading something like Hornqvist for a #2/3 d-man makes us a worse hockey team. We just don't have the expendable assets available to do it in a way that makes sense imo. I say build to our strengths and let the good outweigh the bad as best we can.

 

[xxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

I think trading something like Hornqvist for a #2/3 d-man makes us a worse hockey team. We just don't have the expendable assets available to do it in a way that makes sense imo. I say build to our strengths and let the good outweigh the bad as best we can.

I do too. Sid, Geno, Kessel and Hornqvist are the only untouchables I'd have. It makes no sense to trade Letang or Maatta when it comes to landing a guy to help the blueline, so we're gonna have to move a forward.

It's gonna have to be a package around Perron, whose value is probably extremely low so the add-on will have to be significant. Maybe we could get something of substance for Bennett+, or Pouliot+.

Until we make the move, which I think we have to in order to get back to where we want to be, we'd be best served running Maatta-Letang and Cole-Dumoulin. Because as flawed as that is in my opinion, it's the best we can do. But I still really, really don't think that's cutting it now, or in the future.

 

[malkshake]

Yeah, I guess we'll have to agree to disagree. I think a #2/3 is a need, and a #4/5 isn't gonna be good enough.

Let's, just to twist the knife a little deeper, think about what could've been;

Maatta - Letang
Despres - Trouba
Dumoulin - Cole

Alright, I got that off my chest.



I don't know, maybe I'm wrong, but I think it's idiotic.

We finally, for the first time in a decade, have the depth to give Sid and Geno both legitimate wingers, and we're talking about loading them up and putting Kessel with Bonino.

Yeah, that's dumb. Sorry.

To be fair, it's probably exactly why this coach will do it. He loves to do dumb ****.

Kessel will also have the luxury of playing against the second defensive units and he will be able to play his game knowing it is his line. It is absolutely not a dumb idea to at least test early in the season at least until Sid finds his game. Malkin might force Crosby to shoot more.

 

[Boocock]

Until we make the move, which I think we have to in order to get back to where we want to be, we'd be best served running Maatta-Letang and Cole-Dumoulin. Because as flawed as that is in my opinion, it's the best we can do. But I still really, really don't think that's cutting it now, or in the future.

Well, the good news of running those combos is that d-men who are still developing will have plenty of opportunities for prime ice time.

I think a big problem with the d-core is a lack of physicality and "truculence", but that might be solvable on the bottom pairing instead. Guys like Roman Polak could be available.

If it's just ability the Pens are looking for, there are rumors of Shattenkirk being on the block as well. He'd certainly help the power play.

 

[Asuna]

Kessel will also have the luxury of playing against the second defensive units and he will be able to play his game knowing it is his line. It is absolutely not a dumb idea to at least test early in the season at least until Sid finds his game. Malkin might force Crosby to shoot more.

Nice avatar.

 

[Ogrezilla]

I do too. Sid, Geno, Kessel and Hornqvist are the only untouchables I'd have. It makes no sense to trade Letang or Maatta when it comes to landing a guy to help the blueline, so we're gonna have to move a forward.

It's gonna have to be a package around Perron, whose value is probably extremely low so the add-on will have to be significant. Maybe we could get something of substance for Bennett+, or Pouliot+.

Until we make the move, which I think we have to in order to get back to where we want to be, we'd be best served running Maatta-Letang and Cole-Dumoulin. Because as flawed as that is in my opinion, it's the best we can do. But I still really, really don't think that's cutting it now, or in the future.

Bennett can't have any value right now with his injuries, and I just don't understand trading Pouliot for top 4 D help, especially since we need a PPQB.

 

[iFishyHD]

Kessel will also have the luxury of playing against the second defensive units and he will be able to play his game knowing it is his line. It is absolutely not a dumb idea to at least test early in the season at least until Sid finds his game. Malkin might force Crosby to shoot more.

So we are sending him back to Toronto?

 

[xxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Bennett can't have any value right now with his injuries, and I just don't understand trading Pouliot for top 4 D help, especially since we need a PPQB.

I'm admittedly biased against Pouliot, but I'm sure he's got significant value. Adding the right prospect and/or pick, or Bennett and Pouliot, and you're probably looking at the right price for the guy we're gonna need.

Again, I'm not the GM, and I don't know what teams want or how much they value our guys. Still, I think this team's gotta make a move to land a good, long-term #2/3 if we want any hope of sniffing another Cup before Sid and Geno start to significantly decline.

I don't envy the position this team's put itself in, or the job it's gonna have to do digging itself out of it. That's for certain.

 

[mpp9]

If Sid can't at least play top lines to a draw without Malkin or Kessel flanking him, we may have to revisit how we deploy those three. Maybe down the road you play Sid and Geno together. Kessel has shown he can produce offense with only a decent center. But for now, lets see how Malkin and Kessel look.

 

[Ogrezilla]

I'm admittedly biased against Pouliot, but I'm sure he's got significant value. Adding the right prospect and/or pick, or Bennett and Pouliot, and you're probably looking at the right price for the guy we're gonna need.

Again, I'm not the GM, and I don't know what teams want or how much they value our guys. Still, I think this team's gotta make a move to land a good, long-term #2/3 if we want any hope of sniffing another Cup before Sid and Geno start to significantly decline.

I don't envy the position this team's put itself in, or the job it's gonna have to do digging itself out of it. That's for certain.

I think we just have to agree to disagree.

 

[xxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

I think we just have to agree to disagree.

I suppose so. Not the first time, surely not the last.

 

[plaidchuck]

It can be a lose-lose situation honestly. Either they move forward depth or d prospects for a middle pairing D that doesn't help them win, or they wait a year+ and Cole/Dumo/Pouliot/Maatta bust and the team is right back where they started with malkin and Crosby getting older. Again with the Despres trade and Perron looking crappy, they've dug their own grave if things continue to go south.

Whatever happens, they need to hang on to picks to at least have the chance to refill the cupboard over the next few years. No more dumping firsts for a guy who may end up on your fourth line.

 

[Jacob]

Bonino isn't a #2 center. If we still had Staal, or someone like him, it'd make more sense to load up the top line.