What wingers do you think should be tried as a centre and what centres should be converted to a winger?

[Golden_Jet]

Yeah, but keeping Mackinnon as a C allows him to use his best tool, skating, more than playing at wing would.


There is talk of playing Yurov at C this year. He has the wheels and size for it.

It's easy for most (not all) C's to become wings, much harder to do the reverse.

Ya when you have a centre that can wheel and is shifty, you want him carrying the puck through the neutral zone.

 

[Miro4Norris]

Crosby should have been RW. Idk why well maybe he would've dodged the concussion era that way

 

[JuJu Mobb]

The jury is still out on Kirby Dach. He'll probably be a C this year.

Is Martin Necas a C or a W?

 

[Seanaconda]

Ya when you have a centre that can wheel and is shifty, you want him carrying the puck through the neutral zone.

Wouldn't a normal breakout normally break the wingers out first , I guess the winger can hold up and pass to the center but Mac should be fine on the wing if he was put there , would save him energy at least

 

[Sabre the Win]

OP not using Tage Thompson as thee example is a complete miss here. Looked like a pedestrian on wing. Now a star at center.

 

[SeanMoneyHands]

I'd like to see Pat Maroon as a stud center.

 

[Chet Manley]

I often wonder if McDavid would be better on wing. He's fast enough to play 200ft, but only playing 170ft might make opposition defencemen break down and cry.

 

[biturbo19]

Isles finally realized Barzal was only LARPing as a center.

I think it's an interesting question...but there are a lot of things that Barzal does do well as a Center. It lets him take more advantage of his speed as an asset, as well as being more involved in handling and distributing the puck creatively and with speed through the neutral zone.

It lets him make those big looping plays to really press with momentum, rather than a more stop/start choppier game, with more time spent on the wall as a Winger.

For me, it's one of those cases where the best bet is probably to play him as the de facto Center, but with a Winger who is strong on faceoffs and doesn't mind getting bogged down deep in their own zone defensively.


It's just a matter of how much the benefits outweigh the liabilities, and finding the right Winger with the chemistry to trade off some responsibilities at times. Vs weighing how Barzal really functions as a winger and if he can still be fully effective there in that particular system.

Yeah, but keeping Mackinnon as a C allows him to use his best tool, skating, more than playing at wing would.

Yeah. Mackinnon is a bit of the same element. He's not really the classic puck distributing Center, but playing in the middle lets him really "wind up" and take advantage of what he does best. Taking the puck up ice with speed and power to threaten defences that way. With Rantanen seeming the perfect sort of complement as the somewhat unconventional "playmaking winger" who handles a lot of that role, and have obviously demonstrated that he can even play Center effectively when called upon.



Then on the other end of things, you've got people who insist that someone like John Tavares should be moved to wing at this point. The problem is the opposite side of that same coin though. His lacking footspeed starts to become a real problem if you force him to the wing where the game is more choppy, forcing him to play that stop/start game that will just highlight his lack of dynamic acceleration. Whereas playing at Center gives him more opportunity to keep him momentum up so he's no constantly throttling up/down/up/down...but can play with more anticipation and just keep himself rolling once he gets up to speed.



It's where...at both ends of the deal, skating tends to be one of the biggest factors in whether a guy really fits at Center or Wing. Skating...style of play related to that, and the hockey sense to use anticipation more effectively.

 

[PettersonHughes]

Seeing Pius Suter and how he cuts from the right wing on the breakaway and I think he's naturally a right wing. Also think EP40 should be a left wing since his faceoffs aren't that great.

 

[biturbo19]

Seeing Pius Suter and how he cuts from the right wing on the breakaway and I think he's naturally a right wing. Also think EP40 should be a left wing since his faceoffs aren't that great.

Petterson is a natural Center through and through though. He's able to play top level defence while carrying a line and being extremely productive offensively as the pivot. Yeah, i wish he was a bit better at faceoffs...but of all the things to worry about, that's pretty low on the priority list for me.

Even when there was a time where his strength and footspeed might've limited him a bit to more of a winger role, he was a guy who seemed more natural on his off wing as a RW anyway. As both a playmaker and as a shooter.



Whereas a guy like Pius Suter...i'm not sure it really matters. Most teams have at least one or two depth guys like that who can do a little bit of either. Just a utility duty on a player who isn't really someone to lean on in a critical role at either position.

The more interesting ones are the guys who seem to be equally comfortable as a C/W in a quality Top-6 capacity. Some guys are just much better at it and don't see a real drop-off in effectiveness either way. Other good players are affected a lot more by being moved.

 

[PettersonHughes]

Petterson is a natural Center through and through though. He's able to play top level defence while carrying a line and being extremely productive offensively as the pivot. Yeah, i wish he was a bit better at faceoffs...but of all the things to worry about, that's pretty low on the priority list for me.

Even when there was a time where his strength and footspeed might've limited him a bit to more of a winger role, he was a guy who seemed more natural on his off wing as a RW anyway. As both a playmaker and as a shooter.

Yeah I'm not saying it's worrying, but just how it is; when the Lotto Line was thriving, he often started on LW while Miller (who's around 57-58% on draws) naturally played up the middle. Plus he's had goals off the rush (like the slapshot he took in his rookie season that had shades of Gretzky) which would be on the left wing. Sure he does thrive on RW especially in the right circle on the PP but both wings are feasible, and he would probably benefit from having a faceoff specialist up the middle; at worst, the two of them can just switch after the draw.

 

[mazmin]

Mark Schiefele would be one of the handful of best RWs in the game.

He's probably best suited to the wing.

 

[Conbon]

Byfield 100% needs to be played in a top 6 center role before being declared a bust. Look at Thompson and Bennett. Thats all it took. Also said for years that Monahan was more suited to playing the wing with his deficiencies at C.

 

[JKG33]

Byfield 100% needs to be played in a top 6 center role before being declared a bust. Look at Thompson and Bennett. Thats all it took. Also said for years that Monahan was more suited to playing the wing with his deficiencies at C.

He's shown absolutely nothing to indicate he's deserving or capable of a top 6 center spot in the NHL.

Now with Dubois on the team, it looks like Byfield will stay on the wing where he's not a liability.

I feel like Mark Stone would absolutely dominate as a C. Mackinnon on the wing would be filth, that much speed coming down the wing, I don't know how you keep up with him.

I don't think Mark Stone is the answer. His skating isn't his strong suit. And a lot of his takeaways come from playing higher in the zone where he has the time and space to anricipate the play, mitigating his lack of speed.

Plus taking faceoffs full time might do his back in for good

 

[Conbon]

He's shown absolutely nothing to indicate he's deserving or capable of a top 6 center spot in the NHL.

Now with Dubois on the team, it looks like Byfield will stay on the wing where he's not a liability.

Neither had Thompson or Bennett. They got moved and played like completely different players. You don't draft a power forward center at 2nd overall just to bury him forever, never giving him a fair shake then pay out the ass for that same type of player. Its just horrid asset management.

 

[JKG33]

Neither had Thompson or Bennett. They got moved and played like completely different players. You don't draft a power forward center at 2nd overall just to bury him forever, never giving him a fair shake then pay out the ass for that same type of player. Its just horrid asset management.

Trust me, both had shown more than Byfield. If he was any good he would've been the 3C last year.

The horrible asset management is drafting a project player like him 2nd overall to begin with, when Stutzle was sitting right there. And before anyone mentions hindsight, I said that before the draft too.

 

[boredmale]

I think it's an interesting question...but there are a lot of things that Barzal does do well as a Center. It lets him take more advantage of his speed as an asset, as well as being more involved in handling and distributing the puck creatively and with speed through the neutral zone.

It lets him make those big looping plays to really press with momentum, rather than a more stop/start choppier game, with more time spent on the wall as a Winger.

For me, it's one of those cases where the best bet is probably to play him as the de facto Center, but with a Winger who is strong on faceoffs and doesn't mind getting bogged down deep in their own zone defensively.

It's just a matter of how much the benefits outweigh the liabilities, and finding the right Winger with the chemistry to trade off some responsibilities at times. Vs weighing how Barzal really functions as a winger and if he can still be fully effective there in that particular system.

Islanders basically have 5 center and 4 are good on faceoffs. On the flip side besides Nelson, Horvat may be there best goal scorer. Only makes sense he plays with one of those 2 guys and plays center (besides faceoffs) in the offensive zone and rw'er in the defensive zone.

 

[Seanaconda]

I often wonder if McDavid would be better on wing. He's fast enough to play 200ft, but only playing 170ft might make opposition defencemen break down and cry.

Like if he plays with drai they switch center duties up as they play

Drai is known as the best passer in the NHL by the players. He breaks McDavid out a lot even tho dmen obv cover McDavid harder than anyone.

I can see why coaches always try and get them together for parts of games because idk if there is a better combo for McDavid.

 

[biturbo19]

Islanders basically have 5 center and 4 are good on faceoffs. On the flip side besides Nelson, Horvat may be there best goal scorer. Only makes sense he plays with one of those 2 guys and plays center (besides faceoffs) in the offensive zone and rw'er in the defensive zone.

The whole Horvat thing is fascinating because as an offensive player, he very much plays like your prototypical winger. He's a drive the net goal-scorer and a very mediocre at best puck distributor. He scores most of his goals either on the powerplay, or off the rush.

He's also severely overrated defensively.

The issue is...he kind of has to play Center, because he lacks the footspeed and acceleration to be effective as a winger. It's the same problem that makes him a very lackluster, overly conservative Penalty Killer. He can't play a dynamic stop/start game because, while his build up speed is actually pretty good now...his acceleration from a stop is still embarrassingly poor.


He's great at Faceoffs because he's strong as an Ox and works relentlessly on specific skillsets like that. But he's actually the sort of guy you wish you could move the Wing, but would end up neutering his effectiveness.


The reality is...you can't just have a guy play "Center in the Defensive Zone" and "Winger in the Offensive Zone" or vice versa. That transition play in between the two is absolutely critical and fundamental in defining the Center vs Winger roles. That's the part of the game where positions actually really matter. Once you're in the offensive zone it's just F1/2/3 and it's often more of a "first come, first serve" process.

The awkward fit with Horvat-Barzal is that they're both really natural puck carriers through the neutral zone. They seek to do opposite things when they cross the opposing blueline, but their games are both kind of predicated on carrying the puck through the neutral zone.

I understand the thinking in pairing them together, but i'm still not sure it's going to be an experiment that works long-term to get the most out of either of them. It's where something like Stephenson-Eichel in Vegas was a really interesting fit...because they seemed to be able to more or less trade off seamlessly. Their skillsets as a Center were complementary rather than overlapping. Not convinced Barzal-Horvat is gonna work like that.

 

[easton117]

Bruins would be happy to have him pretend to be a center for them.

Depending on how preseason goes they might be happy to take one of us as a centre

 

[SEALBound]

My twilight year planning for the Penguins has always been to move Malkin to Sid's wing and bring in a young 2C to build for the future.

 

[Chan790]

The jury is still out on Kirby Dach. He'll probably be a C this year.

Is Martin Necas a C or a W?

For the Canes? 100% a wing. He doesn't play the pivot the way RBA wants centers to play in his system. Also, he's a poor FO guy.

That said, Necas prefers C, his skills as a playmaker and skating ability are better suited to C, I expect him to leave at some point for an opportunity to play C, and much like Lindholm, I expect him to break out offensively once some team gives him a center opportunity. But...he'll never be a center in Carolina.

 

[Breakers]

Marner could handle the center position without a doubt me thinks

 

[ScottyMascotty]

I've always thought Sam Reinhart should be a center, but now it's 2 teams who've felt differently, so what do I know?

It just seems like his skillset is perfect to center a good line.

We have Barkov (1C), Bennett (2C), and Lundell (maybe the next Barkov), so he is used as a playmaking winger

 

[MNRube]

Mark Stone would make a solid C. He’s a bit plodding but he’s smart enough to make it work