Quote:
Originally Posted by Bonded
If they keep Monahan and Gaudreau I hope they separate them for the first 10 games and stick with it.
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Flip Mangiapane and Gaudreau - especially for playoffs*.
Mangiapane - Monahan - Lindholm
If Ward is going to insist on a heavy forecheck type of game*, Mangiapane has that dog on a bone quality to him that maybe what Monahan and Lindholm need.
Lindholm seems to be a defensive conscious so it may be rare that he is F1 for the top line. Mangiapane is a get there first type of guy and perhaps that 'jam' is what they need.
Tkachuk - Backlund - Gaudreau
When CGY breaks out it almost always goes up the left side. Gaudreau getting the puck and carrying it in seemed to be targetted by opponents ie they waited for him to get puck in nz then kind of swarmed him. If he had to dump it, the line was not great at retrieval.
Backlund can be the guy to carry the puck - leaving Gaudreau to make his magic on the right side once the puck is in the offensive zone.
If the line is going to play forecheck game Backlund and Tkachuk are great at it.