Quote:
Originally Posted by scobel
Lol just a thought!! I don’t think Dube is going to be 4th line permanently, but more of an opportunity to see what Simon can do and to see if there is a formula to have the ability to roll 4 lines vs 3. Big fan of Dube, just a thought.
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The problem with this idea is always ice time. In a perfect world in which each team on the ice played perfect, blemish-free hockey with no penalties called, then yes, a team can roll four lines, and everyone gets enough ice-time to establish a rhythm. However, that never happens. Powerplays and penalty-kills always disrupt the rotation, and it can be difficult to get things reset.
Most of the time a team can at best keep three lines in a regular rotation, and even then players in the top-nine will log pretty varied differences in ice time. If you keep a player like Dube on the fourth line in hopes on increasing overall speed, what is most likely to happen is that he will rather only get to see the ice for 5- or 7-mins a game, which is precisely what you don't want happening. Given the personnel that the Flames have, it is much better to try to more evenly distribute ice time among the top-nine forwards, leaving the fourth-line to pick up occasional shifts and give the other players a break.