jMoneyBrah
Registered User
It's not really a 4th line, it's just two 3rd lines, and creates competition with those lines which is good.
From the team's perspective this would be great! Without seeing how those two bottom lines actually play together, in my head they seem like they would work out to being a very skilled and offensively oriented 3rd line, and a 4th line that is really tenacious, bruising, but can also put the puck in the net. I think both lines would be similar level of overall effectiveness, though by using different means. I mean you could flip the lines and put the Smith as the third line ahead of Tierney's line and say the team is working the kids in slowly, and it still looks good on paper.
For one, I think we all love the idea of the 4th line not being a black hole of suck. Secondly, having a 3a, 3b situation with the bottom 6 would allow the coaching staff to make adjustment, get matchups, and play the hotter bottom line on a game to game basis. So long as everyone is holding up their end defensively, and Torres can rebound to the player he was before injury (big if there), I think it gives great flexibility for the team and allows them to dictate the game using their entire bottom 6 (something SJ hasn't done in forever).
From Wingels' perspective this would kinda suck, as it would likely hurt his individual stats on the season.