In this edition of the hotstove we share our picks for the best line(s) in the Western Conference.
Todd Cordell
Prior to Jaden Schwartz going down with an injury, I thought the line featuring he, Vladimir Tarasenko, and Brayden Schenn was as dominant as any in the Western Conference.
They were fantastic in possession, drastically out-chanced their opponents, and clearly had the finishing ability to take advantage of that as they posted a +13 goal differential in just 220 minutes of 5v5 ice.
…‹As for lines that are currently together, it's tough to go against Jonathan Marchessault, William Karlsson, and Reilly Smith. In almost 400 minutes together they have a +13 goal differential and their 3.16 expected goals/60 leads the conference. They may not have name brand value, but they play extremely fast and get on-ice results that rival the best lines in hockey.
Peter Tessier Now, even after this much disbelief and the cliche answer of 'Vegas, it's still Vegas but with a close second from Calgary.
Marchessault Smith and Karlsson have been deadly and the backbone of the deadly Vegas attack but what about Calgary. They have two top lines but the Tkachuk, Frolik, Backlund line is giving opposition headaches at just the same pace.
They both are leaders in xGF% and CF% so what separates them? The best line has to be from Vegas as Calgary has had a few seasons to put this together and develop that unit. M, S, K came out of nowhere and was not even a thing a year ago.
Hats off to McPhee and Gallant because like most things with Vegas, this should not be happening.
Jared Crozier I think there have been a number of great duos in the West, but the best trio has been the St. Louis Blues' top line of Vlad Tarasenko, Brayden Schenn and Jaden Schwartz. Schwartz' injury has skewed the results and Schenn and Tarasenko seem to have been split up recently, but when the trio has been together they have almost 60% Corsi for, a ridiculous total.
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