Thunderpriest 8 Report post Posted January 1, 2009 Why do we never see the top line consist of Zetterberg, Datsyuk & Hossa? Don't get me wrong, I understand Babs tryiong to spread the wealth and make match-ups harder for the opponent, but you never see this line together, even on powerplays or when we're behind. To me, it seems to be a no-brainer. We have enough depth to make the other three lines very effective. I seem to recall that we did okay last year, and the only forward we lost was Drake. Why do we not see this lineup: Zetterberg, Datsyuk, Hossa Franzen, Filppula, Holmstrom Cleary, Hudler, Samuelsson Maltby, Draper, Kopecky Hell, there are any number of line permutations for lines 2-4 that look good. Top Line + Hudler, Filppula, Franzen Cleary, Kopecky, Holmstrom Maltby, Draper, Samuelsson or Top Line + Cleary, Filppula, Franzen Hudler, Kopecky, Holmstrom Maltby, Draper, Samuelsson Etc, etc, etc. Opinions? Personally, I don't think that Babs wants Homer or Samuelsson to fall to 2nd or 3rd line duty, respectively. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SouthernWingsFan 854 Report post Posted January 1, 2009 Why do we never see the top line consist of Zetterberg, Datsyuk & Hossa? Don't get me wrong, I understand Babs tryiong to spread the wealth and make match-ups harder for the opponent, but you never see this line together, even on powerplays or when we're behind. To me, it seems to be a no-brainer. We have enough depth to make the other three lines very effective. I seem to recall that we did okay last year, and the only forward we lost was Drake. Why do we not see this lineup: Zetterberg, Datsyuk, Hossa Franzen, Filppula, Holmstrom Cleary, Hudler, Samuelsson Maltby, Draper, Kopecky Hell, there are any number of line permutations for lines 2-4 that look good. Top Line + Hudler, Filppula, Franzen Cleary, Kopecky, Holmstrom Maltby, Draper, Samuelsson or Top Line + Cleary, Filppula, Franzen Hudler, Kopecky, Holmstrom Maltby, Draper, Samuelsson Etc, etc, etc. Opinions? Personally, I don't think that Babs wants Homer or Samuelsson to fall to 2nd or 3rd line duty, respectively. You basically gave the answer to your own question there. Harder to match up again, etc. Plus Holmstrom, as slow footed as he might be and won't win any hard shot competitions anytime soon, would provide less use on a 3rd or 4th line as opposed to the 1st/2nd line. He's almost always going to be paired with Datsyuk or Zetterberg IMO. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VM1138 1,921 Report post Posted January 1, 2009 You basically gave the answer to your own question there. Harder to match up again, etc. Plus Holmstrom, as slow footed as he might be and won't win any hard shot competitions anytime soon, would provide less use on a 3rd or 4th line as opposed to the 1st/2nd line. He's almost always going to be paired with Datsyuk or Zetterberg IMO. Agreed. Homer is a first-liner. He is irreplaceable on that top line and makes it so much more dynamic. Dats and Z are amazing, but Homer is just as much a part of that tandem in my mind. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
eva unit zero 271 Report post Posted January 1, 2009 I would like to see one of these lineups: Datsyuk/Zetterberg/Holmstrom Cleary(Franzen)/Hudler/Hossa Franzen(Cleary)/Filppula/Samuelsson Maltby/Draper/Kopecky Hudler/Zetterberg/Hossa Cleary(Franzen)/Datsyuk/Holmstrom Franzen(Cleary)/Filppula/Samuelsson Maltby/Draper/Kopecky Hudler/Zetterberg/Hossa Holmstrom/Datsyuk/Samuelsson Cleary/Filppula/Franzen Maltby/Draper/Kopecky Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jasper84 333 Report post Posted January 1, 2009 I liked tonight's top two lines best. That 2nd line finally put up some points, and Dats can still play his game with pretty much anyone on his line. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Heroes of Hockeytown 694 Report post Posted January 1, 2009 Today's lines were pretty intriguing: Homer-Datsyuk-Franzen Hudler-Zetterberg-Hossa Cleary-Flipper-Sammy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ComradeWasabi 109 Report post Posted January 1, 2009 I really like the way the lines were set up today. Franzen has a great shot and Datysuk makes everyone look better, so that line is great; Zetterberg is fantastic when he has two good, hard-working wingers. The third line could leave a bit to be desired but if Flip picks it up and Sammy gets going then it could be dangerous as well. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wingslionstigers 12 Report post Posted January 2, 2009 To simply answer your question with common sense that cant be argued against. By putting them 3 on one line. In the end you would loose overall points produced as a whole team. If you had Dats, Zett, and Hossa on the same line how many more points do you think they would score than having Holmstrom there? Probably none and at best a hand full of points. Now think about how many points your going to loose on your second line. Holmstrom is unreplaceable in front of the net. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
