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Sheldons' new look lines, will they work?

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Sounds like they are still going to try different things and tinker throughout the season.

I was never a fan of making extended line changes considering Mikheyev just got back and the top line has arguably been the best line in hockey since put together but has still only played 140ish minutes total. If you have a first line rocking 70% xGF% and a scoring rate higher than many teams PP, I say you ride it.

I think all of the lines are pretty much set for the playoffs outside of some questions about Kerfoot vs. Mikheyev on the 2nd/3rd lines.

I understand the need to mix things up during the season though.....just don't overthink things.
 
We should keep rolling the new lines. Matthews and Marner only rip it against weaker teams, it's no surprise they had a good game against Detroit.
 
I don't mind the mid-season line tinkering, if shit hits the fan in the playoffs it would be nice to have a strategy beyond playing M&M 25 minutes per game.

I'd even like to explore some different D pairings. Maybe Rielly-Liljegren is a good pair, but we'll never know unless we try it.
 
zeke said:
Pretty amazing that one really good defensive center with no offense can destroy three lines like that.
Click to expand...

You can't have 3 scoring lines if your 3rd line can't score, and David Kampf had 1 goal last year so his offense is limited
 
m1ker said:
We should keep rolling the new lines. Matthews and Marner only rip it against weaker teams, it's no surprise they had a good game against Detroit.
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It's actually the opposite....trust me.

A big strike against those two is that they rip elite teams up and play down to their comp.
 
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LEAFANFORLIFE23 said:
It doesn't matter what his "optimal look" is if his "optimal look" doesn't work.
and it didn't at all.
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The way the tweet is written kind of makes it seem like the opposite, but what Keefe is actually saying in that quote is that the usual setup is his optimal look. You can hear the full quote in the video that Zybalto posted above.
 
Dekes For Days said:
The way the tweet is written kind of makes it seem like the opposite, but what Keefe is actually saying in that quote is that the usual setup is his optimal look. You can hear the full quote in the video that Zybalto posted above.
Click to expand...

If that's true why change what was clearly working?

Thankfully It ended quick.
 
You know the team is good when it has the "luxury" of mixing lines.
It's a "good problem" to have.
 
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You guys used the word narrative a lot in the off-season, then Leafs start using that word in interviews.

A group of us fought for the optimal lines all week, Keefe comes out today admitting the old lines is the "optimal look".


Confirmed Leafs brass read the boards. Steal all our lingo :sarcasm:
 
Unless he's ready for some Marner/Nylander magic Keefe needs to chill on the experimenting because his new combos are no bueno. I'm pro-change. I'm anti bad logic. I have no issues with the shuffle at least be serious about it. That line 1 and line 3 together in the same game is too much downgrading at once to experiment at the same time with.

All of us want to see Nylander/Marner. Those 2 specifically without a puck eating C between them. Hopefully Keefes quotes today mean the show we're waiting for is coming soon.
 
Gimmie this for a few games:

Bunting Matthews Kase
Nylander Tavares Marner
Kerfoot Kampf Mikheyev
Engvall Spezza Simmonds

Start resting Simmonds and Spezza by rotating in Clifford and Ritchie.
 
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Shooter2x said:
You guys used the word narrative a lot in the off-season, then Leafs start using that word in interviews.

A group of us fought for the optimal lines all week, Keefe comes out today admitting the old lines is the "optimal look".


Confirmed Leafs brass read the boards. Steal all our lingo :sarcasm:
Click to expand...
Just wait until they start saying agenda and lie.
 
They were given two games. I hope they find success because you need all lines rolling come playoffs. The puzzle they can't seem to solve when it comes time.
 
Our 4th line hasn't brought much. Simmonds I thought looked good when given looks a little higher up and a more regular shift. Spezza is usually good no matter what, but hasn't been noticeable lately. And Engvall has looked a bit more lost since losing the 3rd line LW spot, mainly cuz he's lost "pace" in his line.
Willy can play LW. Kase has shown he can play in the top 6. Simmonds has done better with more ice. And Engvall has done better when paired with speed. Roll lines 3-4 evenly.
Bunting-Matthews-Marner
Nylander-Tavares-Kase
Kerfoot-Kampf-Simmonds
Engvall-Spezza-Mikheyev
 
Havoc said:
xGF rarely loses as a predictor when the sample size increases. Massive raking of points incoming for those 2. Rocket should be another easy win for Matthews given their first half xGF. Just leave it alone. Just need to hope they can carry it into the playoffs this time but that's a story for another day.
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I couldn't help but remember this post from last week while watching 3rd against Wings and tonights game. Nailed it dude.
 
Dekes For Days said:
69% xGF% and 75% GF% is pretty dominant.
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The xGF number is highly influenced by the fact that Montreal wasn’t actively trying to score against 34 & 16 as much as they were focused on keeping the 3rd man high and not pinching

Just answer this 1 question and we can drop the topic. Whenever your coaches put you in a shutdown role against a top 5 division scorer did you get a lot of scoring chances?
 
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