Sheldons' new look lines, will they work?

[Shooter2x]

Need to bring in a shooter for Nylander then it looks good yeah

 

[Antropovsky]

I am happy you are not a coach, all you care about is money.
Subban would be your 1D.

Style of play is also important when constructing lines.

I bet Keefe believes all 4 of Matthews, Tavares, Nylander, Marner can carry their own line, but he chose the ones that use their teammates the least to carry their own line, it is truly shocking that he wants the player with the best vision to be with an elite finisher.

Or the other angle is the player with the worst shot paired with a player who can shoot. I would love to see Marner in Nylanders place on the third. Would be very interesting to see what Marner can do without another 11 million dollar player on his line. Honestly, maybe he would look better and prove doubters wrong.

 

[zeke]

The other lines were working, these lines will also work.

Lots of options - i hope Keefe remains flexible and willing to mix it up often going forward.

 

[Teeder Keon]

Don’t know if it will work
I think so
I think it’s a terrific attempt
I’m just always in favour of trying different approaches, especially at this time of the season
I hope they try something different with the PP
Go Leafs Go

 

[notbias]

Or the other angle is the player with the worst shot paired with a player who can shoot. I would love to see Marner in Nylanders place on the third. Would be very interesting to see what Marner can do without another 11 million dollar player on his line. Honestly, maybe he would look better and prove doubters wrong.

He put up 90+ points without an 11 million dollar player.. go look at previous seasons if you want to know

 

[zeke]

For me the biggest surprise is not spreading out the 3 X $11 mil contracts on different lines as opposed to spreading the 3 Amigo's instead.

Spread the cap vs spread the youth.

Why the heck would you want a coach to determine his lineup based on player salary?

 

[Teeder Keon]

The other lines were working, these lines will also work.

Lots of options - i hope Keefe remains flexible and willing to mix it up often going forward.

All that good stuff without stats and wizardry!
Impressive !
Go Leafs Go

 

[zeke]

All that good stuff without stats and wizardry!
Impressive !
Go Leafs Go

 

[Antropovsky]

He put up 90+ points without an 11 million dollar player.. go look at previous seasons if you want to know

Who was that with?

 

[notbias]

Who was that with?

Kadri/Marleau I believe

 

[Enga Olly]

Honestly, this line combination has me very intrigued.

I have seen people post these balanced line combo's before in the past and I never really cared for them TBH. Not sure what has changed. Maybe the fact that it has become a reality now I am actually giving it the thought it always probably deserved

To me, it just makes so much sense to at the very least trial these lines for a handful of games. We need to go into playoffs with every combination explored IMO. I feel like our top guys have been neutralized in years past when it comes to the playoffs. Teams line match our big boys and they end up playing to a neutral game script for 7 games. If anything a marginally positive game script. Certainly not what you need from that level of players. This type of combination may hinder Auston's offence a touch, but ultimately that means nothing to me if it produces more W's. Especially when it matters the most.

Willy has been elite this year. I really truly hope they have made it abundantly clear to him specifically that this is not a demotion. Not that I really think Willy gives a shit or not, but his play this year needs to be celebrated in every way. His attention to detail on both sides of the ice has been exceptional. I really don't see this as a demotion at all, it's an assignment. Sort of like Kadri, but instead of it being a defensive role it will be more of an offensive exploitation role.

Say what you will about Keefe, he is constantly shuffling the deck in and out of the game itself. There should be no stone left unturned going into playoffs and he appears to be doing that right now.

cannot wait to see this in action tomorrow TBH.

I love this reshuffling. We're taking advantage of our current position in the standings. Our PO appearance is more or less secured so we don't HAVE to win every game like our PO lives depend on it. We're also not trying for anything foolish like the President's Trophy. Eye on the prize - it's all about PO success. This will give us practice/insight on what options we have come PO time. Completely jazzed about this approach.

 

[Bluelines]

How do we judge if it worked?

 

[Antropovsky]

Kadri/Marleau I believe

The year he put up 69 points? That's not a ppg, that is .84 ppg.

 

[Twine Tickler]

I think it has a chance to succeed. The only uncertainty is whether not Kampf will be able to mesh with Kerfoot and Nylander. The other potential drawback is that it negates having a shutdown line.

I think I am most excited about this line.

Kase and Kampf worked very well together earlier on in the year. Both are absolutely relentless forecheckers, and they never take a shift off.

To me, Kase reminds me of a more skilled prime Leo Komarov. Statistically they don't compare well, but stylistically they're a very strong comparable. They earn every point they get. I do believe Ondrej has more skill than Leo ever did, but I don't think it's off the charts skill either. I really think what has made Kase a successful top 6 forward in the past has been the effort he puts in every shift. He is absolutely relentless.

But when comparing Kase to Nylander, the skill level is no where close TBH. I also think Nylander's ability to read plays, skate for days, and overall strength is among the best on the team. He may not look as relentless as Kase, but I'd argue Nylander is one of the most relentless puck pursuers on the team. He knows exactly when to exert his energy to either gain a step or get a loose puck. It's very impressive. Not to mention he is probably the best on the team at protecting the puck in a 1v1 battle outside of Matthews.

I think that 3rd line will still have that relentless identity because of that. It gets a huge shot in the arm offensively with Kerf and Willy and realistically should be equally as effective in puck pursuit. You don't see any of Kerf, Kampf or Nylander take many shifts off. With the right matchup's down the lineup I think they can really do some damage.

 

[ACC1224]

You'll know

I'm not opposed to change but the other lines were working pretty well weren't they?

 

[Bluelines]

Opinion | William Nylander dropped to Maple Leafs third line

I love balance through the line up but if this is being done so other teams can't line match as well that tells me 2 things

1) Last year when Keefe said he was not going to line match in the playoffs, this becomes a proxy admission of his failure to adjust as a playoff coach.

2) Marner and Matthews are about to have a pouty week....

 

[Shooter2x]

I think it has a chance to succeed. The only uncertainty is whether not Kampf will be able to mesh with Kerfoot and Nylander. The other potential drawback is that it negates having a shutdown line.

I think he'll mesh just brace yourself for more wasted Nylander plays that Matthew's would easily bury.

 

[notbias]

The year he put up 69 points? That's not a ppg, that is .84 ppg.

he was on a ~90 pt pace while playing with those two. I'm not doing the leg work to find the exact games he played with them, but he was on pace for over 90 pts and played over half the season. Unless that sample size is too small, we don't really have much to go on

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

I'm not opposed to change but the other lines were working pretty well weren't they?

They were that's why I don't expect these lines to be a long term thing even if they click in the next couple games

 

[ShaneFalco]

Why the heck would you want a coach to determine his lineup based on player salary?

Seems he does that with PP1

 

[Jojalu]

How do we judge if it worked?

Great point? They win far more than they lose already. Matthews/ Tavares and Nylander are already PPG. They usually dominate possession and shots.

 

[ACC1224]

They were that's why I don't expect these lines to be a long term thing even if they click in the next couple games

That's why I was curious on how we will know if it works.

 

[Twine Tickler]

Marner and Matthews are about to have a pouty week....

Ya I mean I understand why star players under normal circumstances would get pissy over lineup changes when the team is 25-10-3 and the offense is rolling to a decent degree. But lets be real, this is not a normal team with normal circumstances. This is a team that has historically performed as a giant when it doesn't matter and a dwarf when it counts.

I really don't think Mitch or Auston have earned the right to be upset at this TBH.

This is about establishing a successful model when the dial gets turned up. Whenever that happens, seemingly that combination is nowhere to be seen, positively or negatively. We cannot have that continue to happen.

I have always loved how willing Sheldon is to switch things up in game if he has a bad feel for a line. I really think by trying this combo out it will just give him more insight on when to use this type of lineup. It's never a bad thing to keep teams guessing. I suspect this type of lineup might actually stick for a bit, and if/when it gets stale, I am confident we will go back to something more like what we are used to seeing.

It's all about experimentation at this point. Like @Enga Olly said earlier, We're taking advantage of our current position in the standings. We afforded ourselves the luxury of trying to optimize our lineup. This can only be viewed as a positive IMO. Even if it is a complete fail. I'd rather them experiment now vs. game 3 of the first round when we've lost the first 2

 

[Jojalu]

Mitch and JT are not fast enough with foot speed to carry even themselves .. they both a slower straight line skaters but with complimentary skill sets so it works as we all saw 2 seasons ago .. 2 slower guys can move up and down ice together which helps .. Mik can get in on forecheck and help them too

Mik has been awful playing top 6. He is a straightline skater with almost zero hockey sense. He rarely contributes to any cycle and can't make a pass.

Much better with Kamph and Engvall where he can either come in with Engvall or be first out of zone and vet in alone

 

[ACC1224]

Ya I mean I understand why star players under normal circumstances would get pissy over lineup changes when the team is 25-10-3 and the offense is rolling to a decent degree. But lets be real, this is not a normal team with normal circumstances. This is a team that has historically performed as a giant when it doesn't matter and a dwarf when it counts.

I really don't think Mitch or Auston have earned the right to be upset at this TBH.

This is about establishing a successful model when the dial gets turned up. Whenever that happens, seemingly that combination is nowhere to be seen, positively or negatively. We cannot have that continue to happen.

I have always loved how willing Sheldon is to switch things up in game if he has a bad feel for a line. I really think by trying this combo out it will just give him more insight on when to use this type of lineup. It's never a bad thing to keep teams guessing. I suspect this type of lineup might actually stick for a bit, and if/when it gets stale, I am confident we will go back to something more like what we are used to seeing.

It's all about experimentation at this point. Like @Enga Olly said earlier, We're taking advantage of our current position in the standings. We afforded ourselves the luxury of trying to optimize our lineup. This can only be viewed as a positive IMO. Even if it is a complete fail. I'd rather them experiment now vs. game 3 of the first round when we've lost the first 2

Why would you assume they're upset?