Line Combos: Roster 2019-2020

[Omar]

Perfect time to sell off some players when injured guys return.

Poehling is here to stay. He’ll play wing on Kotkaniemi’s line:

Lekhonen-Danault-Gallagher
Drouin-Domi-Suzuki
Poehling-Kotkaniemi-Armia
Vejdemo-Evans?-Weal

Tatar, Kovalchuk, Byron, Cousins, Thompson dealt.

 

[Roadhouse]

Fully healthy? Is that before or after the TDL?

Assumption 1 - the team wins enough games to satisfy management that they are buyers at the TDL.
Assumption 2 - Bergevin has no intention of re-signing Scandella because he wants a long term upgrade on Kulak.

Key observation 1 - Domi needs a raise soon and hasn't quite lived up to last year's performance, I'd say some nights he even looks selfish in his decision-making.
Key observation 2 - with Caufield here next year or the one after next at the absolute latest and the possibility that Kovy re-signs for 1 or 2 years in MTL, the top 9 is log-jammed.
Key observation 3 - I read a lot more talk on here about Suzuki becoming a #1C than Domi being one for us on the long term. Domi becomes expandable.

Spring 2020

Tatar - Danault - Gallagher
Drouin - Suzuki - Kovalchuk
Poehling - Kotkaniemi - Armia
Lehkonen - Thompson - Cousins

Chiarot - Weber
Solid top 4 D (traded for Domi) - Petry
Mete - Fleury
Kulak

2020-21 season - bye Thompson, Cousins, Scandella

Drouin - Suzuki - Kovalchuk
Tatar - Danault - Gallagher
Poehling - Kotkaniemi - Armia/Caufield
Lehkonen - Evans - Caufield/Armia

Chiarot - Weber
Solid top 4 D (traded for Domi) - Petry
Mete/Romanov - Fleury
Romanov/Mete/Kulak

That provides stability, which is what ownership & management seem to be in love with. No major moves other than Domi for a top 4 D, some picks to get the value right for both teams.

 

[26Mats]

Curious to see what line-up configuration we have when everyone is healthy again. Does Poehling get sent down?

I actually would like to see Drouin play with Kovalchuk on the PP. Domi/Weber on the 1st PP and Drouin/Kovalchuk on the 2nd

Tatar / Danault / Gallagher
Kovalchuk / Domi / Suzuki
Drouin / Kotkaniemi / Armia
Poehling / Thompson / Lehkonen
Byron, Weal, Cousins

Chiarot / Weber
Scandella / Petry
Mete / Fleury

Price
Lindgren

One of Poehling, Byron, or Thompson comes out for me. I would guess for CJ it's Poehling or Byron. But Poehling has a little time to try to make his power game indispensable.

My lineup if Poehling can step up:

Tatar / Danault / Gallagher
Kovalchuk / Domi / Byron (Byron tries to pick up where he left off when he played with Galchenyuk and Radulov)
Poehling / Suzuki / Drouin
Lehkonen / Kotkaniemi/ Armia (maybe swap Poehling and Lehkonen - we'll see how Poehling-KK-Armia do shortly)
Thompson, Cousins

Chiarot / Weber
Scandella / Petry
Mete / Fleury
kulak (gotta keep Kulak in case of injury)

Price
Lindgren

 

[26Mats]

Drouin/Domi/Gallagher
Tatar/Suzuki/Kovalchuk
Poehling/Kotkaniemi/Armia
Byron/Danault/Lehkonen

Juulsen/Weber
Mete/Petry
Chiarot/Fleury

Price/Lindgren

Love the forwards. But Juulsen over Scandella?

 

[Grand Admiral Thrawn]

Tatar - Danault - Gally
Drouin - Suzuki - Kovy
Domi - Kotka - Armia
Byron - Thompson - Lehky

Then Tatar is traded at the TDL and we roll with:

Drouin - Danault - Gally
Domi - Suzuki - Kovy
Poehling - KK - Armia
Byron - Thompson - Lehky

Domi and Suzuki can swap positions.

And with Tatar we get a Def and a pick/prospect

 

[ottawa]

Fully healthy? Is that before or after the TDL?

Assumption 1 - the team wins enough games to satisfy management that they are buyers at the TDL.
Assumption 2 - Bergevin has no intention of re-signing Scandella because he wants a long term upgrade on Kulak.

Key observation 1 - Domi needs a raise soon and hasn't quite lived up to last year's performance, I'd say some nights he even looks selfish in his decision-making.
Key observation 2 - with Caufield here next year or the one after next at the absolute latest and the possibility that Kovy re-signs for 1 or 2 years in MTL, the top 9 is log-jammed.
Key observation 3 - I read a lot more talk on here about Suzuki becoming a #1C than Domi being one for us on the long term. Domi becomes expandable.

Spring 2020

Tatar - Danault - Gallagher
Drouin - Suzuki - Kovalchuk
Poehling - Kotkaniemi - Armia
Lehkonen - Thompson - Cousins

Chiarot - Weber
Solid top 4 D (traded for Domi) - Petry
Mete - Fleury
Kulak

2020-21 season - bye Thompson, Cousins, Scandella

Drouin - Suzuki - Kovalchuk
Tatar - Danault - Gallagher
Poehling - Kotkaniemi - Armia/Caufield
Lehkonen - Evans - Caufield/Armia

Chiarot - Weber
Solid top 4 D (traded for Domi) - Petry
Mete/Romanov - Fleury
Romanov/Mete/Kulak

That provides stability, which is what ownership & management seem to be in love with. No major moves other than Domi for a top 4 D, some picks to get the value right for both teams.

If we're trading a top 6 player, then it has to be Danault. Domi is cost controlled unlike Danault and can easily fill in for him as 2C as well. You also forgot about Byron.

Byron for 2nd/3rd pick
Danault + 2nd/3rd pick for a LD

 

[Roadhouse]

If we're trading a top 6 player, then it has to be Danault. Domi is cost controlled unlike Danault and can easily fill in for him as 2C as well.

Claude Julien adores Phillip Danault. I happen to think his defensive game as a C would be missed for a long time if he left... Domi's never been able to fill that role, that I've seen. We need to believe in Suzuki and Kotka as future 1-2C of this team, IMO. Danault is the perfect 3C in the long run.

Edit: Domi needs an extension this summer, he'll make double what Danault makes next year. Then Danault will get his raise and he'll come in a fair bit under long term Domi money.

 

[ottawa]

Claude Julien adores Phillip Danault. I happen to think his defensive game as a C would be missed for a long time if he left... Domi's never been able to fill that role, that I've seen. We need to believe in Suzuki and Kotka as future 1-2C of this team, IMO. Danault is the perfect 3C in the long run.

We don't need Domi to fill a defensive need, he's an offensive minded center. Suzuki can fill in for Danault if you want defense...our centers next year should be:

Domi
Suzuki
Kotkaniemi
Thompson

Poehling on the wings...when Kotkaniemi is ready to make the jump to 2C, shift Domi to the wing and Poehling to 3C.

 

[Roadhouse]

We don't need Domi to fill a defensive need, he's an offensive minded center. Suzuki can fill in for Danault if you want defense...our centers next year should be:

Domi
Suzuki
Kotkaniemi
Thompson

Poehling on the wings.

That's your assessment. Sure. I don't happen to think we should run Domi as 1C for the 2020 decade, but I respect your take. I'm a lot higher on Suzuki's versatility than Domi's offensive flashes.

 

[ottawa]

That's your assessment. Sure. I don't happen to think we should run Domi as 1C for the 2020 decade, but I respect your take. I'm a lot higher on Suzuki's versatility than Domi's offensive flashes.

I agree, you missed my edit so I'll just repost it.

Poehling on the wings...when Kotkaniemi is ready to make the jump to 2C, shift Domi to the wing and Poehling to 3C then run with:

Domi - Suzuki - Gallagher/RW
Drouin - Kotkaniemi - Armia
LW - Poehling - Caufield
LW - Thompson/4C - RW

 

[Roadhouse]

I agree, you missed my edit so I'll just repost it.

Poehling on the wings...when Kotkaniemi is ready to make the jump to 2C, shift Domi to the wing and Poehling to 3C then run with:

Domi - Suzuki - Gallagher/RW
Drouin - Kotkaniemi - Armia
LW - Poehling - Caufield
LW - Thompson/4C - RW

I see where you're going. It'll be interesting just 2 years from now to see where things are at.

Sadly I don't believe Poehling is going to be an NHL centre. On the bright side, I think he'll be a bigger Gallagher; all-heart winger, tough along the boards and chips in goals in-close. Maybe not 30 goals a year though lol...

 

[Habs Halifax]

I agree, you missed my edit so I'll just repost it.

Poehling on the wings...when Kotkaniemi is ready to make the jump to 2C, shift Domi to the wing and Poehling to 3C then run with:

Domi - Suzuki - Gallagher/RW
Drouin - Kotkaniemi - Armia
LW - Poehling - Caufield
LW - Thompson/4C - RW

I agree Domi is a puck possession winger. But I also think Poehling can be more effective as a power forward winger. His puck possession skills does not appear to be a strength to me at this stage. Could change as time moves forward but right now today, he is a power forward winger. This is why I think Danault needs to stay.

In terms of the future, I have Suzuki, Kotkaniemi, and Danault as our centers.

 

[habdynasty]

Danault to the 3rd line , top defensive center and no 1 guy on the pk. need some offence on the top 2 lines .

 

[ottawa]

I agree Domi is a puck possession winger. But I also think Poehling can be more effective as a power forward winger. His puck possession skills does not appear to be a strength to me at this stage. Could change as time moves forward but right now today, he is a power forward winger. This is why I think Danault needs to stay.

In terms of the future, I have Suzuki, Kotkaniemi, and Danault as our centers.

I'd be happy with Danault as our 3C, as would most members on this board. The only issue is, how do you convince a 50 point center to take on that role and sign for a typical 3C contract.

Danault's value is as high as it will ever be, we could pawn him off to any league as a crappy 1C or a legitimate 2C. Now is the time to capitalize on these kinds of guys, getting your bang for your buck and stockpiling our futures...I honestly think we'll be ready to push for the playoffs starting in a couple seasons.

 

[Habs Halifax]

I'd be happy with Danault as our 3C, as would most members on this board. The only issue is, how do you convince a 50 point center to take on that role and sign for a typical 3C contract.

Danault's value is as high as it will ever be, we could pawn him off to any league as a crappy 1C or a legitimate 2C. Now is the time to capitalize on these kinds of guys, getting your bang for your buck and stockpiling our futures...I honestly think we'll be ready to push for the playoffs starting in a couple seasons.

Danault can get extended this summer and if he ask for more than $5M ish, let him play out his last season and trade him at the deadline (possibly). We can't afford to overpay players like Danault. Valuable piece for us in the middle of the line-up but if he wants to cash in, let him test the UFA market and he might circle back. If he doesn't cause some other team want to give him both term and AAV more than what we want ($5M for 6 or 7 years with lots of July bonus money), let him go.

I doubt other teams value him more than we do. Most would consider him a Bozak or Nelson type. Nelson just got $6M but only $2M in July money. I can see Danault falling in the $5M - $6M range and I'd engage at that rate. I do think Danault is the type to want to stay.

From our 4 UFA's (Danault, Gallagher, Tatar, Petry), Danault is the guy I can see signing a fair contract more than the others. He's the least of my worries.

The other thing to note is I don't think the "3rd line" exist on our roster. It tracking to be three 2nd lines we roll.

 

[That Habs Fan]

Drouin-Suzuki-Kovalchuk
Domi-Danault-Gallagher
Poehling-Kotkaniemi-Armia
Lehkonen-Thompson-Cousins
Weal

Trade Tatar and Byron for futures (LD and picks)

 

[26Mats]

Drouin-Suzuki-Kovalchuk
Domi-Danault-Gallagher
Poehling-Kotkaniemi-Armia
Lehkonen-Thompson-Cousins
Weal

Trade Tatar and Byron for futures (LD and picks)

What futures do you expect to get for those two?

 

[1909]

Drouin-Suzuki-Kovalchuk
Domi-Danault-Gallagher
Poehling-Kotkaniemi-Armia
Lehkonen-Thompson-Cousins
Weal

Trade Tatar and Byron for futures (LD and picks)

Domi won't accept to play on a wing..... I would keep Tatar and just dump Cousins or Weal or Both.

And I am not sure Poehling deserves at all to stay at NHL level this year.

 

[Walrus26]

Suzuki >> 2019 / 20 Domi.

Max is making himself dispensable with his recent performances, IMO.

 

[26Mats]

Tatar - Danault - Gally
Drouin - Suzuki - Kovy
Domi - Kotka - Armia
Byron - Thompson - Lehky

Then Tatar is traded at the TDL and we roll with:

Drouin - Danault - Gally
Domi - Suzuki - Kovy
Poehling - KK - Armia
Byron - Thompson - Lehky

Domi and Suzuki can swap positions.

And with Tatar we get a Def and a pick/prospect

Drouin-Suzuki-Kovalchuk
Domi-Danault-Gallagher
Poehling-Kotkaniemi-Armia
Lehkonen-Thompson-Cousins
Weal

Trade Tatar and Byron for futures (LD and picks)

Tatar's been such a beast. I don't see MB, who wants to make the playoffs next year, trading him. But we'll see.

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

If we're trading a top 6 player, then it has to be Danault. Domi is cost controlled unlike Danault and can easily fill in for him as 2C as well. You also forgot about Byron.

Byron for 2nd/3rd pick
Danault + 2nd/3rd pick for a LD

1Danault is our best defensive center
2Bergevin traded for him
3Julien loves him
4its not happening until at least one of those three names changes to someone else

 

[Cobra Commander]

Get rid of Danault, his offense sucks balls and he’s the reason Suzuki and KK won’t get top minutes. Honestly he’s just in the way, Poehling could be the 3C. And if Domi doesn’t wanna play wing trade him too.

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

Get rid of Danault, his offense sucks balls and he’s the reason Suzuki and KK won’t get top minutes. Honestly he’s just in the way, Poehling could be the 3C. And if Domi doesn’t wanna play wing trade him too.

The only way they trade danault is if they go full on tank mode but they won't so danault is here to stay long term in my opinion. Danault is good but I want to see the team burn down and rebuild for 3-4-5 years so I would also move him personally

 

[BehindTheTimes]

We don't need Domi to fill a defensive need, he's an offensive minded center. Suzuki can fill in for Danault if you want defense...our centers next year should be:

Domi
Suzuki
Kotkaniemi
Thompson

Poehling on the wings...when Kotkaniemi is ready to make the jump to 2C, shift Domi to the wing and Poehling to 3C.

so wrong. Danault is not going anywhere and I am thankful for that.

 

[ottawa]

so wrong. Danault is not going anywhere and I am thankful for that.

Thankful to who?