There’s a lot of talk about Tkachuk playing injured, but to me, unless there’s an injury to his groin or feet, then it shouldn’t be a factor because it’s his skating that’s holding him back the most right now.
He just can’t seem to keep up with the pace of the game. There’s lots of one and dones so there’s lots of skating up and down out there which does not suit his game one bit. The middle of the ice is clogged to hell and the checking is so tight that he and Gaudreau are having a hard time playing off each other.
At the very least Johnny can turn the play up quick and capitalize on the Star’s mistakes, but Chucky can’t do that. It’s tough to watch #19 out there right now just plodding away trying to do anything. At this point, I’m ready to see him taken off the the top line and pushed down to the bottom 6 where his poor play can be limited.
Tkachuk has probably hurt his line more than help, so If I’m Darryl, I’m shortening the bench and using the few guys that have actually made real contributions. I’d even think about sticking Lewis on the top line where he can win more puck battles and retrieve the puck for Gaudreau and Lindholm so they can create. The second line can stay as is because they’ve looked the best out of any other line against the Stars.
The bottom 6 can probably be interchanged using whatever combination that fits. Their ice time should be limited anyway, no point in saving the legs of your stars any way if you lose tomorrow. Might as well play the heck out of them.
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