Line Combos: Spread The Big 3 or Stack Them All in the Top 6? - POLL

[Puckstuff]

This isn’t so much about the specific lines themselves but more about your philosophy when it comes to lineup construction.

Do you prefer to stack all the best players in the top 6, or would you rather spread the Big 3 (Matthews, Marner, Nylander) across the top 9 for more balanced scoring threats?

Here’s an example for both approaches:

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Stacked: Big 3 in the Top 6​

Knies - Matthews - Nylander
McMann - Tavares - Marner
Domi - Holmberg - Robertson

• This approach keeps all your top players in the top 6, ensuring your best offensive weapons are concentrated on two lines.

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Spread the Big 3: Each One Runs Their Own Line​

Knies - Matthews - Domi
McMann - Tavares - Marner
Robertson - Minten - Nylander

• In this approach, one of Marner, Nylander and Matthews is anchoring a separate line. This spreads the offense more evenly. This also forces opposing teams to spread their defensive focus more thinly across all lines, making it harder to contain your team’s attack. It’s a smart way to avoid overloading a single line and to ensure every shift has the potential to generate offense.

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[ClarkSittler]

We tried this last year and put Nylander on the 3rd line and PP2. Our offense sucked.

 

[Punch Drunk Loov]

Whatever the case, a core 4 player should be on line 3

 

[Gary Nylund]

We tried this last year and put Nylander on the 3rd line and PP2. Our offense sucked.

The real problem is that our offence has sucked in game 7's for many years.

 

[Puckstuff]

We tried this last year and put Nylander on the 3rd line and PP2. Our offense sucked.

Keep him on PP1 and use him on the 3rd line.

If we have one of the big 3 on each line, we won't be in a situation where come playoff time, all the other team have to do is shut down Matthews-Marner, which has also become predictable.

 

[Voodoo Child]

One thing I like about Berube is when he runs a blender, he runs a true blender.

Combinations of guys you never expected to see - Holmberg-Marner, JT-McMann, Lorentz-Willy and all that.

This is how you unlock versatility. Guys should all play together. The team should have set lines but also be optimized to play apart if they have to.

Tough opponent? Run the big boys. Weaker team? Mix it up. Top-heavy opponent? Spread the love.