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Dallas vs Jets UPDATE: Scheifele and Lowry in- Roslovic out |
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Update: Scheifele and Lowry in, Roslovic sits.
In a somewhat unexpected move Jack Roslovic will sit tonight and Branden Tanev will be alongside Adam Lowry and Andrew Copp. Maurice's explanation was Tanev on the PK and his physical nature. Given how the Stars went after Scheifele and others in the last game between the two teams having Tanev in and the bigger Armia could be the simple reason for Maurice's decision.
While Tanev is not the ideal PK player having Lowry back could be a boost but the stats are against using Tanev that was. As mentioned below this move seems to be in alignment with a game by game strategy for Maurice- which may not be a poor decisions.
The Dallas Stars, they of the 8th place in the Western conference, are in town tonight after losing 3-2 to the Senators on Friday night. The Jets are coming off a 6-2 beat down of rival Chicago on Thursday night and looking to keep a healthy seven point lead on 3rd place Minnesota.
The Jets have a game in hand on the Wild, and tonight they play the game vs the Stars. Dallas is 6-4 in their last ten game while the Jets are 6-3-1 in the same time span. The good news is that the Jets are getting healthy.
Yesterday Adam Lowry took line rushes with the team on what would appear to be the 4th line and he's likely in tonight. Mark Scheifele is also a day time decision to play as well. The bad news is that Dmytri Kulikov is out for up to 8 weeks after having to undergo back surgery due to the injury sustained in the New Jersey game.
The loss of Kulikov is somewhat troubling as while he has had a relatively unspectacular season it's the kind of play that the Jets have needed to anchor their third pairing or more when he's been called upon. While he has come at a decent price he has provided the stability on the ice that was not their with Mark Stuart, now it's time to see how Ben Chiarot and recently acquired Joe Morrow compete for that spot.
In regards to line this is how Scott Billeck saw them yesterday:
When Scheifele returns, and that could be today how would these line change?
81-55-26
27-25-29
85-18-40
17-9-52/13
What happens now is some one will have to sit but how will Maurice make that decision.
Before the Lowry and Tanev injuries the third line was this:
Lowry Copp Tanev and they were a disruptive force against the opposition once they found their groove. They controlled play, kept the opposition in check and generally made the Jets a pain to match up against up and down the roster. Does Maurice go back to his trusted combination? Seeing as who he trusts is a big point for the coach it would make sense that he does but that was before the arrival of Paul Stastny.
Stastny has fit in remarkably well between Ehlers and Laine and that means when Scheifele comes back does Bryan Little move to a third line role and with who? You can see above that Little simply moves Copp down but would having Armia on the wing be the right combination?
It would not be unreasonable to use the next couple of games as a test point for the bottom two lines both for chemistry and to measure against tactics vs effectiveness.
The possible logic for keeping Armia with Perreault and Little is that he adds some scoring touch and size to the line while Roslovic/Tanev would keep the speed and tenacity back on the 4th line with Lowry and Copp. In theory and practice Roslovic is more-skilled Tanev and does a better job on his reads through the middle of the ice but Tanev is better suited to using his body on the forecheck. That aspect of his game has been an evolution too, as for much of last year and early this year he had trouble using his speed without taking himself out of the play by being too reckless. That had changed before he was injured and he had become very effective with Lowry and Copp.
The toss up is between Armia, Tanev and Roslovic and it's a good problem to have as one will have to sit when Scheifele comes back. This is the luxury of depth few teams have and a luxury that the Jets needs to use wisely and carefully. If there is any question about Scheifele I would suspect he sits again tonight and that the trio of Armia, Tanev and Copp are semi-auditioning for a role and spot tonight for future games. They could also be used depending on the opposition as well and slotted in and out as needed- again this is a good option to have and one the Jets have not had for some time.
Returning to health could not have come at a better time for this team as they have five more games (including tonight at home) before a brief road trip and the wrap at home.
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