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Using any players what does Malkin's perfect line look like? |
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I great a question via Twitter so while we wait on confirmation on what division the Penguins are in I figured I would answer it
This is a great question. I think when you look at the kind of player Evgeni Malkin is you have a lot of possibilities to work with given your parameters. Malkin is still excellent in lugging the puck up through the neutral zone, he’s great at keeping his feet moving in the offensive zone, his passing is still elite, he can create time and space for others, and if he is given time and space he can still score goals.
The players I would choose for Malkin are different than for a Sidney Crosby. Malkin is no slouch with physicality, but Sid is more of a grinder and cycler of the puck whereas Malkin likes to operate in the middle more. Taking this into consideration I *think* I have the right mix to help Geno maximize his great talents.
The left wing choice was fairly easy. It was the first name that popped into my head. I’m going with who I thought the league MVP was last year in Artemi Panarin. Panarin is an electric player who has the mind, hands, and speed to keep up with Malkin. Panarin can reciprocate what Malkin does for others. I didn’t just want players who would score goals because of the time and space Geno created. I want players who can do the same for him. Panarin will do just that. In fact, this will be a theme for the entire lineup. All my selections are able to benefit Malkin instead of Malkin predominately benefiting them. These are mutually benefiting relationships
On the right side I am taking the Hart Trophy winner from a year before. Nikita Kucherov is among the best at his position and is well rounded to take advantage of his time with Malkin. This is an all-Russian line and it just happened to be that way. It wasn’t intentional, but hey something for Russia to think about at the next international tournament. An added bonus is Malkin can naturally use his Dad voice to call for the puck seeing as though his son’s name is Nikita.
I thought about putting Leon Draisaitl on the left wing. I think he would be a great fit to play with Malkin. I thought about David Pastrnak for the right wing. I even thought about using a player Malkin can play with on the Penguins with Jake Guentzel. Those players are all top end goal scorers and deserved mention.
As for the defense I could have easily gone with Kris Letang as the right defender, but I’m not. I don’t think anybody who thinks he should be there is wrong. Malkin and Letang work great together. Instead I am going with a youth movement. Players who have the ability to skate the entire 200 feet and become fourth and fifth forwards. Players who have great hands and offensive instincts.
My right defenseman is going to be Cale Makar. I have a high amount of regard for Makar and he would be electric with Malkin (or any star player as we see in Colorado). He has the total package and his ability to move around in the offensive zone during after the initial rush will be huge. I need players willing to go anywhere in the offensive zone and be able to read Malkin’s creativity. Makar can do this
On the left side I am using the same logic as I did with Makar to select Quinton Hughes. My hope with this five player unit is to incorporate “total hockey”. Instead of playing traditional positions I want them to read off of one another and be able to seamlessly fill in for one another creating an aggressive attack. These players can all immediately transition the puck and are all comfortable attacking time and space. It would be a constant wave and always put the opponent on their heals. Whatever goals they give up on mistakes would be dwarfed by the mistakes the other team would make and it wouldn’t take too many mistakes for this five man group to capitalize on.
The fun factor is tough to beat with this lineup and so is the on-ice production.
There are certainly many more interesting combos to come up with. This was mine. What is yours?
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