Should Homer Still Be On the Top Line?

[Dave 324]

I've been posting almost this exact lineup for months. The only difference being my choices to swap Franzen and Cleary, keeping the Cleary/Z/Hudler line going and also reuniting the Franzen/Abby/Bertuzzi line that seemed to work out pretty well at the end of last year.

I suggested Eaves as a possible linemate for Dats a year ago. I was laughed at by pretty much everyone with an "Eaves, huh? Sure, whatever." kind of reaction.

And furthermore, I was the first to suggest a Mursak/Helm/Eaves line as a potential for this year. Now everyone has it slated in as a given.

Very interesting that so many laugh at me for my posts and then re-post things I had previously stated as good ideas.

Hipster Eva was putting line threads together when they were underground, you probably never heard of them.

[hooon 1,089]

Hipster Eva was putting line threads together when they were underground, you probably never heard of them.

It was prophesied by the elders long ago that he-who-must-be-agreed-with (Eva) would foretell of a 4th line so unfathomably quick that all of LGW and their insignificant opinions would be squashed down before thee in a fury of vindication, thus proving that the deity-formerly-known-as-Eva was and shall ever be absolutely 100% correct about anything and everything ever related to this strange realm of hockey.

[DatsyukianDangles122 16]

I like that third line if it was more of a fourth line. I would roll four lines and let there be a slower heavy line in Homer Abs and Bert... but also would look to see if there were other options.

I love how Homer plays, but he always seems to slow down Pav and Hank, or anyone else for that matter. Bert can't be slowed down by him. (already moves slow) I would start by hooking them up and putting them against less skilled players. That is, the fourth line.

Franzen could be a choice too, but I would rather try to make him speed up rather than let him slow down.

Lets face it, Helm, Mursak, Eaves... they are too good and too fast to be on the fourth line based on your lines.

The problem is the second line has to suffer then.

I would keep Zetter and Pav together and put Hudler with them.

Make the second Fil, Cleary, and Franzen. That would be the least horrible option in my opinion. Let Anyone on the bottom lines switch with Cleary from time to time, and be prepared to put Hudler down. I would also switch Franzen with Hudler every so often to motivate them both. We still have anchors on our lines though...

That problem is unavoidable but we have to deal with it until a trade occurs.

Well I'm pretty sure the 3rd and 4th lines will be playing equal minutes anyway, so it doesn't matter in the end. You could switch it up and make Homer - Abby - Bert the 4th line instead, but it's not nearly as good defensively as Helm's line.

I think that we should keep that first line intact, because it did have that one scoring streak and we REALLY need Hudler to produce at this point. Maybe switch Cleary out with Franzen, but I think we need Z to anchor the second line for sure. If Hudler still ends up sucking on that 1st line, then we can shake it up and throw him on the 3rd. But for starting the season, I think this is a good lineup.

Hudler - Datsyuk - Cleary

Filppula - Zetterberg - Franzen

Mursak - Helm - Eaves

Holmstrom/Miller - Abdelkader - Bertuzzi

Emmerton

Sounds good to me.

Wildcard *******!

Commodore-Holmstrom-Howard

Filppula-Ericsson-Helm

Stuart-Miller-Kronwall

White-Conklin-Kindl

Lidstrom

Datsyuk

Eaves-Emmerton

Bertuzzi-Mursak

Cleary-Abdelkader

Franzen

Hudler

Zetterberg

I would absolutely love to see Hudler play goalie

[SouthernWingsFan 854]

I want to see this line back together (assuming full health of course), they just dominated whenever they were together in the 2009 playoffs...Franzen-Zetterberg-Cleary.

Franzen-Zetterberg-Cleary

Filppula-Datsyuk-Holmstrom

Hudler-Abdelkader-Bertuzzi

Mursak-Helm-Eaves

[St. Michael (the Red Wing) 422]

You're responding to my challenge with a cop out. Come on. If you are going to get all snippy about the line combos I made, show me better line combos that don't have Holmstrom on the top two lines. I didn't post what I think the lines should be; I posted what I think they should be if Homer isn't on one of the top two lines.

If we go based on your lineup we can swap Homer for Hudler, but that doesn't fit your argument. Homer for Abby or Flip leaves the two slowest forwards on the team on the same line, although it would still be an effective offensive line. Not sure how I feel about Abby playing on the top line though. Hudler outscored him by 20 points last season despite effectively missing almost half the season offensively. Hudler has shown excellent chemistry with Datsyuk. You could break up the fourth line and bring Eaves up to replace Homer, but then what do you do in the bottom six? If you keep them both out of the top six, there is no possible lineup with a solid checking line (Miller/Mursak/Helm/Abby/Eaves) which does not also have Hudler and Homer on the same line.

So give me a lineup, please.

I didn't get all snippy about your line combos. Well just Hudler being on the top line. Not happening imo. Looking back at this thread people have all sorts of line combos with Homer included on the top 2 lines. So what I did is fair. I don't think Homer deserves to be on the top line but I'm not the coach. On regards to Hudler the sooner we trade him the better cause for one I won't have to hear you argue about him in every thread on this message board Cheers

oh and p.s. I don't feel like giving you another lineup. Honestly training camp is around the corner and we'll know the lines soon enough. Cheers again

Edited August 24, 2011 by St. Michael (the Red Wing)