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I hope that Brian Gibbons and Carter Rowney aren’t meant to be
the solution to the Anaheim Ducks’ fourth line problems.
Yet, looking up and down Anaheim’s current lineup, it’s hard to see Randy Carlyle putting them anywhere else.
Daily Faceoff has them both on the fourth line with Troy Terry, while Patrick Eaves is still listed as injured. Since Eaves is supposed to play and Carlye would probably not play Terry on the fourth line, I think Anaheim’s lineup should look drastically different than what it did last year.
I took the liberty of re-arranging the Ducks’ lines to what I believe would allow them to roll
four really solid lines, all of which could be defensively effective and worth playing for more than the three minutes or so we gave Chris Kelly and Jason Chimera.
SC1: Rakell - Getzlaf - Eaves
SC2: Gibbons - Kesler - Perry
SC3: Terry - Henrique - Kase
CHK: Cogliano - Rowney - Silfverberg
Now, I know it’s weird to see Andrew Cogliano and Jakob Silfverberg on the fourth line. But, if we ignore the “tradition” of an NHL fourth line and just look at how the Ducks can most effectively disperse skill, this is a line that could actually handle solid minutes and move a ton of pressure off Ryan Kesler.
Because on the second line, Kesler should really be worried as much or more about producing offense. He shouldn’t always have to deal with defensive assignments that keep him out of the offensive zone.
He and Perry are both 60 point players, which means they should have a line backing them up and taking on some of those difficult, defensive minutes.
Putting Silfverberg on the fourth line also gives it some offensive upside.
This, along with a more offensively-minded SC2 also gives the Getzlaf line longer breaks and allows Carlyle to actually use his entire roster.
Am I right? Better ideas? Let me know.