Jooris?
- YouMeAndDupuis9

Ohhh yeahhhh... Jooris. Forgot about him. Wouldnt mind seeing him in action I guess. Does he play wing at all?

Ohhh yeahhhh... Jooris. Forgot about him. Wouldnt mind seeing him in action I guess. Does he play wing at all?
- MattStrat

He does. A Kuhnhackl-Rowney-Jooris line isn't exciting me.

He does. A Kuhnhackl-Rowney-Jooris line isn't exciting me.
- Tojo.

Yeah that sounds disasterous... Assuming they move Sheahan to wing on the 3rd line.

I don't see them taking Khun out now so I'd like to see Kuhn-Sheanan-Sprong... But you just know Rowney is going to be used ughgh

Yeah that sounds disasterous... Assuming they move Sheahan to wing on the 3rd line.

I don't see them taking Khun out now so I'd like to see Kuhn-Sheanan-Sprong... But you just know Rowney is going to be used ughgh
- MattStrat

Yeah, at this point it makes sense to use Sheahan in the top 9 if Simon and Rust are out.

The problem with bypassing Rowney is they'd have to use some of their limited non-injury call ups. They used one on Simon so they only have 3 left. If they had to call up 2 more they'd only have one the rest of the year.

Yeah, at this point it makes sense to use Sheahan in the top 9 if Simon and Rust are out.

The problem with bypassing Rowney is they'd have to use some of their limited non-injury call ups. They used one on Simon so they only have 3 left. If they had to call up 2 more they'd only have one the rest of the year.
- Tojo.

Why? If Simon/Rust are injured, wouldn't any recall be on an emergency basis that wouldn't count towards max # of call-ups?

Määttä has been probably our best D all year and still some people come here to say he might be our worse.

Get a grip. The guy was moved down just to make sure our 3rd pairing would work.

He was better than Dumoulin and Schultz the whole year. And I'm not talking about points just his play and body language on the ice.

Why? If Simon/Rust are injured, wouldn't any recall be on an emergency basis that wouldn't count towards max # of call-ups?
- YouMeAndDupuis9

Because they have 2 healthy scratches. Think they have to play both Hunwick and Rowney first before using emergency recall. At least Rowney for sure, though I think the league would make them play 7 D first.

I can see them using one of their recalls for a forward, but using 2 right now would leave them really limited if down the stretch.

I forgot they did a paper move on ZAR so they only have 2 recalls left.

Did a little research and it looks like they wouldn't have to play 7D. But they do have to play Rowney before a recall so I'd expect him if Rust or Simon can't go. If both can't they can make an emergency recall I believe. (not sure if they have to go on IR though so might need a regular recall).

I think one thing about Crosby, especially this season, is how he is used to get guys going. Most coaches get stuck leaving their cold guys on the 4th line and they get colder. Sullivan just throws Sheary out there with Crosby and he turns productive.

That's one reason he should be getting more MVP consideration. How many star players just rotate through a random assortment of wingers? Would be interesting to see the breakdown of most common linemates between Crosby & Kucherov and the other top candidates... I think that would tell a compelling story.

I think one thing about Crosby, especially this season, is how he is used to get guys going. Most coaches get stuck leaving their cold guys on the 4th line and they get colder. Sullivan just throws Sheary out there with Crosby and he turns productive.

That's one reason he should be getting more MVP consideration. How many star players just rotate through a random assortment of wingers? Would be interesting to see the breakdown of most common linemates between Crosby & Kucherov and the other top candidates... I think that would tell a compelling story.
- MacPatty

Malkin is ahead of Crosby this year. No matter how you put it.
One good game with Sheary and suddenly he's having a masterful year haha

Määttä has been probably our best D all year and still some people come here to say he might be our worse.

Get a grip. The guy was moved down just to make sure our 3rd pairing would work.

He was better than Dumoulin and Schultz the whole year. And I'm not talking about points just his play and body language on the ice.
- Barnaby36

Really happy with how he has rebounded. He has always been very skilled and smart but not having his legs under him last year made him look bad. Now that his skating is back he has really come around looking like a top pairing D man.

Malkin is ahead of Crosby this year. No matter how you put it.
One good game with Sheary and suddenly he's having a masterful year haha
- Barnaby36

Didn't say he is ahead of Malkin, who is also having a great year. Just saying he is having a quietly great season having a mixup of wingers seemingly every game. Just pointing out how Pittsburgh operates differently than most other teams who stack their top players together.

Really happy with how he has rebounded. He has always been very skilled and smart but not having his legs under him last year made him look bad. Now that his skating is back he has really come around looking like a top pairing D man.
- MacPatty

He's truly playing well and his skating is far better than last year. I'm happy we have him.

Dumoulin and Schultz seem to be catching fire lately. Both were F'n lazy in the first half of the season.

Didn't say he is ahead of Malkin, who is also having a great year. Just saying he is having a quietly great season having a mixup of wingers seemingly every game. Just pointing out how Pittsburgh operates differently than most other teams who stack their top players together.
- MacPatty

Fair enough. TBH it's not easy to find Sid wingers. I really hope they maintain those two lines:

Guentzel-Crosby-Sheary
Hagelin-Malkin-Hörnqvist

Let Rust fight it off with Simon for a 3rd LW spot.
Personally I think Rust could work well on the 4th with Sheahan.

Fair enough. TBH it's not easy to find Sid wingers. I really hope they maintain those two lines:

Guentzel-Crosby-Sheary
Hagelin-Malkin-Hörnqvist

Let Rust fight it off with Simon for a 3rd LW spot.
Personally I think Rust could work well on the 4th with Sheahan.
- Barnaby36

4th line Rust would be the best talent spread and keep him on his better side. Still, I'm for whoever gets that 3rd line rolling. They've invested too much there to not give it the best option from Rust, Simon, and ZAR (when they're all healthy )

When is Murray expected to make his return? Going to ride Jarry Saturday and Sunday?

Sheary never seems to disappoint when I criticize him (in a loving, loving way). Good for him, he is a scrapper. Let's hope this is the start of a hot streak.

Sheary never seems to disappoint when I criticize him (in a loving, loving way). Good for him, he is a scrapper. Let's hope this is the start of a hot streak.
- Thunderbolt

Sheary's had a weird year production-wise.

This probably true an all teams, but some players are on shorter leashes than others for whatever reason. People here get very frustrated with Sheary because he hasn't burying chances.

I personally think he's an effective player even when he's not scoring. I think he's good a zone exits and entries (I'd love to see the stats on that), he's good at cycling the puck and has terrific speed.

I like him with Sid even if he's not burying chances and think that line just looks more alive when he's on it.

You get a minus for being on the ice for an empty net goal against. Does that help?
- Feds91Stammer

In most of those senarios its a 6v5, so yea i think its fair enough that i don't mind it.

In most of those senarios its a 6v5, so yea i think its fair enough that i don't mind it.
- joecool2931

There's literally no goalie.

You also realize that players who play 18+ minutes have a higher probability of being on the ice for more goals against than a player who plays 7 minutes a night, right?

When you play in more situations you will be on the ice for more goals. Simple probability.

Also, let's say Sid takes a shift with Rowney, Kuhnhackl, Hunwick and whatever other dman is there in a defensive zone draw. You're gonna tell me if Sid is on the ice with those bums and let's up a goal it shows a an issue with Sid defensively?

Or if Malkin is on the ice when any other linemate turns the puck over leading to a breakaway goal, that should somehow reflect on Malkin?

Yeah, no thanks. I have my issues with advanced stats, but I'll talk most of them over +/-

It doesn’t factor in different types of game situations.

It doesn’t take in to account TOI in comprison to other players. A player who plays 18 to 20 minutes a game is certainly going to have a higher probability of being on the ice for more goals as opposed to a player who plays 6 minutes.

It just doesn’t tell the whole story.
- Rinosaur

But it tells you plenty enough of the story. +10, if he is on the ice, the team is more likely to score than be scored on and vise versa, simple and straight to the point

But it tells you plenty enough of the story. +10, if he is on the ice, the team is more likely to score than be scored on and vise versa, simple and straight to the point
- joecool2931

It tells you almost none of the story.

When is Murray expected to make his return? Going to ride Jarry Saturday and Sunday?
- avsfaninmn

He's skating but hasn't taken shots yet so it's possible. I'd expect they'd play DeSmith before giving Jarry both games, he's generally been decent.

He's skating but hasn't taken shots yet so it's possible. I'd expect they'd play DeSmith before giving Jarry both games, he's generally been decent.
- Tojo.

DeSmith was the victim of a couple of games where the Pens lines and 3rd D combo were all new and the team in front of him played like it was pre season with garbage effort and passion.

Remember that conversation yesterday about how teams should put their best shutdown guys against Malkin instead of Sid? Well, Flyers tried it, it didn't work.