I do understand the concern of having Kane at center in the playoffs though. I just think there will less space for him no matter where he plays. Jayes, if he's there and Hossa will need to be physical and hopefuly create some space for him. If he does struggle, we all know Q will not hesitate to juggle lines.
Here's how Kane feels about the notion of a potential move to Left Wing: "I haven’t played left wing this year so I might as well try that one too."
I really hope this turns out to be just games with the media on Qs part. If he does decide to move Kane to LW, something he hasn't done this season, after his long stretch of finally getting his groove back and playing so well at Center, I'll really have my doubts...
So if we stack the 1st line you want Sharp at center on the 2nd line? Sharp looks to be at his sniping best right now playing on the wing and we will need that to continue. Keep him with 25 and leave him on the wing. Toews return and centering that line would make it a force. And I like the idea of Jayes playing with Kane and Hossa. The opps won’t know which line to put their best checkers on. Now if Q will just co-operate. I doubt he will.
I do understand the concern of having Kane at center in the playoffs though. I just think there will less space for him no matter where he plays. Jayes, if he's there and Hossa will need to be physical and hopefuly create some space for him. If he does struggle, we all know Q will not hesitate to juggle lines.
Sharp will not play Center, we all know it. Top 6 Centers will be Toews and Kane OR Krüger.
Q will mix the lines the way he wants them between the 6 players I said. If it ends with
Kane - Toews - Hossa
Stalberg - Krüger - Sharp
Hayes is not really the right match for Kane & Hossa either, though. Hayes is a big guy but he prefers to be a puck carrier and work behind the net, rather than right in front of it. Who goes to the front of the net on that line? Nobody. At least that is something Kruger does. So even if he's at LW, I'd still have Kruger play with them.
Hayes is not really the right match for Kane & Hossa either, though. Hayes is a big guy but he prefers to be a puck carrier and work behind the net, rather than right in front of it. Who goes to the front of the net on that line? Nobody. At least that is something Kruger does. So even if he's at LW, I'd still have Kruger play with them.
even if that were true, that's still 100x better than brunette who prefers to be watching murder she wrote.
Honestly, the 2nd-line C position is still an issue for me. I'm not comfortable with Kane there, winning 42% of his faceoffs. That will catch up with this team. Personally, I'd roll Kane - Kruger - Hossa though I'm not sure how that will work. But Kruger is a little better at the dot.
Or, the other idea for me is keeping 10/16/25 together and rolling Kane - Toews - Hossa. Or Sharp - Toews - Kane and Stalberg - Kruger - Hossa. There are certainly a lot of options are we will probably see all of them knowing Q.
l o l. Kruger is border inept in his role right now. Stalberg and Sharp do everything, and kruger is just kinda there. Add in the fact that he's horrible at the dot and it makes no sense that he keeps a spot in the top 6 when Toews comes back.
l o l. Kruger is border inept in his role right now. Stalberg and Sharp do everything, and kruger is just kinda there. Add in the fact that he's horrible at the dot and it makes no sense that he keeps a spot in the top 6 when Toews comes back.
Keith - Seabrook
Hjalmarsson - Oduya
Leddy - Olsen
PP 1
Bickell - Toews - Kane
Sharp - Keith
PP 2
Shaw - Bolland - Hossa
Seabrook - Oduya/Leddy
The more time that passes with Saginaw in the playoffs, the less likely it becomes that we seed Saad in the post-season. I think Bickell or Shaw would really have to **** the bed for Saad to get in the line-up once Saginaw is eliminated by London.
Sharp will not play Center, we all know it. Top 6 Centers will be Toews and Kane OR Krüger. Q will mix the lines the way he wants them between the 6 players I said. If it ends with
Kane - Toews - Hossa
Stalberg - Krüger - Sharp
or
Stalberg - Toews - Kane
Sharp - Krüger - Hossa
or
Stalberg - Toews - Sharp
Krüger - Kane - Hossa
Make up your friggen mind. Now you have Kruger back as 2nd line center which is exactly what I suspected was the reason you suggested we stack the the first line in the first place. Cept now you hint maybe he should be a winger there if Kane remains at center. AND I REPEAT. Kruger has no business being anywhere near the 2nd line. Give it up!
Am I the only one that doesn't want to stack the top 6?
Bickell - Toews - Kane
Sharp - Kruger - Stalberg
Shaw - Bolland - Hossa
Bruno - Mayers - Hayes/Bollig
In my opinion this is a much harder set up to stop than stacking the top 6 would be.
On the pp I would roll:
Shaw - Toews - Kane
Sharp - Keith
Stalberg - Bolland - Hossa
Seabrook - Oduya/Leddy
I have no idea why Q hasn't looked to Stalberg more on the pp. At least with Stalberg out there you know the puck will be going towards the net.
no, you aren't. It's Q we talk about, he won't do it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by BobbyJet
Make up your friggen mind. Now you have Kruger back as 2nd line center which is exactly what I suspected was the reason you suggested we stack the the first line in the first place. Cept now you hint maybe he should be a winger there if Kane remains at center. AND I REPEAT. Kruger has no business being anywhere near the 2nd line. Give it up!
who should play in the Top 6 other than Krüger?
Brunette? Frolik? Mayers? Bollig? Morin? Beach?
only other could be Jayes but Krüger is better than him and more developed. + Krüger has PO experience in the SEL & 1 Round in the NHL
no, you aren't. It's Q we talk about, he won't do it.
who should play in the Top 6 other than Krüger?
Brunette? Frolik? Mayers? Bollig? Morin? Beach?
only other could be Jayes but Krüger is better than him and more developed. + Krüger has PO experience in the SEL & 1 Round in the NHL
You’re going in circles Bubba. You want Kruger in the top 6 now after saying he should be on the fourth line a few posts ago. If Jayes can’t cut it in the top 6, Q will likely go back to Brunette, but I wouldn’t completely discount Bickel if he returns to playoff form. A kid like Morin could be a wild card, but unlikely. Of course if Toews can't go, all that will change.
As for the balanced line approach. It sounds good in theory but Hawks are going to need to score goals to be successful. When Q has tried going with balanced lines in the past the team has had trouble putting the puck in the net. Not to mention the chemistry factor. It looks like 25 and 10 have found some and 88 and 81 as well have worked well together this season.
The point about 25 on the PP. Q did finally experiment with that last game and I won’t be surprised if he continues that in the next 2 games and then re-evaluate for the playoffs.
You’re going in circles Bubba. You want Kruger in the top 6 now after saying he should be on the fourth line a few posts ago. If Jayes can’t cut it in the top 6, Q will likely go back to Brunette, but I wouldn’t completely discount Bickel if he returns to playoff form. A kid like Morin could be a wild card, but unlikely. Of course if Toews can't go, all that will change.
As for the balanced line approach. It sounds good in theory but Hawks are going to need to score goals to be successful. When Q has tried going with balanced lines in the past the team has had trouble putting the puck in the net. Not to mention the chemistry factor. It looks like 25 and 10 have found some and 88 and 81 as well have worked well together this season.
The point about 25 on the PP. Q did finally experiment with that last game and I won’t be surprised if he continues that in the next 2 games and then re-evaluate for the playoffs.
Krüger should play on the 4th line if we have a guy that can play in the Top6. Reality says Bruno will get this spot. Bubba says, Krüger would be the better option over the guys I listed
Toews, Sharp, Stalberg or Hayes/Bickell (either could do good things in the slot)
Kane, Hossa and Brunette (2 blondes and a Brunette, played well in March)
Bolland, Shaw, Bickell/Hayes or Stalberg, I think it's Bickell or Hayes but going back a few years in many ways it was the havoc matchups the 3rd line created that permitted them to dance with Stanley. Bickell and Hayes don't scare anyone, Stalberg will. All 3 are good in their own end and Shaw's peskiness, Stalberg's speed matched with Bolland ... That line could both shut down teams and add significant offense, especially with Shaw/Stalberg matching up against 3rd pairing D-men.
This is most likely not the greatest place to post this, but i didn't think it was thread worthy....
Does anyone know what date the 1st home game of round 1 will be? Or more specifically is it likely NOT on Thursday of this next week? I am looking to buy tickets, however Thursday is not possible for me. Last I check the dates were still TBD. Thanks guys.
why do people make lineups with sharp at center? If he was going to play center it would have happened at some point during the season. Seems more than clear that kane will play center before sharp.
why do people make lineups with sharp at center? If he was going to play center it would have happened at some point during the season. Seems more than clear that kane will play center before sharp.
I thought it was what we want not predicting what Q will do.
Word from practice today is that Toews is practicing with Kane/Hossa with a first line of:
Kane-Toews-Hossa
I'm going to be legitimately upset if that is the line we open up with. If it ends up working, of course I'll get over it. But I'd be really upset with the fact that Kane hasnt played LW ALL FREAKING SEASON. Game 1 of the playoffs is NOT the time to start experimenting like this. Nevermind the fact that Kane has been playing extremely well at Center the last several weeks.
Furthermore, the team as a whole has been playing very well with Toews out. The teamwork has been fantastic. Wanna know why? THE LINES STAYED PRETTY MUCH THE SAME. Imagine that! Coach Q, due to injuries, doesn't have the luxury to play with his lines, and the teamwork and chemistry improves. As soon as he gets his guys back, he is potentially deciding to mix things up right off the bad.
I hope we don't go with this first line, if we do it had damn well better work, or I will hold this one on Coach Q. I wasn't constantly bashing him like some around here, but this will really be a make-or-break type of thing for me. We will see what happens...
Sharp/Stalberg has been good together. It bothers me that consistency and teamwork/chemistry seem to be undervalued here. To me, it's not a coincidence that our puck possession has been at its best the last several weeks, because we HAVEN'T been doing the constant line juggling.
Loading up a line may sound like a good idea, but the risk is, if the other team can shut down that loaded line, then the other lines need to produce. And if you go and screw up the teamwork and chemistry of those 2-3 lines, you are putting that at risk too.
Maybe I'm making a bigger deal of it than it is, but I just don't like the idea. The team has been playing well. Don't f--k with it! Keep the lines as intact as possible, and slide Toews between Sharp/Stalberg. Seems like a no-brainer to me...
