The San Jose Sharks Are Rolling With One Of The NHL’s Hottest Lines
SAN JOSE, CA - SEPTEMBER 25: Timo Meier #28 of the San Jose Sharks skates against the Arizona Coyotes at SAP Center on September 25, 2015 in San Jose, California. (Photo by Rocky W. Widner/NHL/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Timo Meier
Peter DeBoer makes some questionable decisions. While the San Jose Sharks are one of the NHL’s best, his line combos are a bit shaky. With Evander Kane being out, you’d expect him to shuffle things around a bit. However, he isn’t playing his best line together too often, and that’s a problem.
The San Jose Sharks don’t need to do too much tinkering with their lineups. However, the Timo Meier, Joe Pavelski, Logan Couture line should be featured a lot more than it is. It was tied for the fifth most played line for the Sharks with 9.4 percent of usage during their game on March 3rd.
The Sharks starting core of Timo Meier, Jonas Donskoi, and Tomas Hertl was great on Sunday. The Meier, Pavelski, Couture has excelled on the top line as of late. While DeBoer has used this line combo a lot in the past, it’s unsettling as to why he didn’t use it as frequently on Sunday.
Again, with Kane out, things get shuffled. Although, this is the Sharks money line right now. The offense clicks when they are in together. The unit has scored 5 goals when being paired with each other over the last 10 games. They are one of the hottest trios in hockey at the moment, scoring the 9th most of any line combo in the league over the timeframe.
You can really knock Peter DeBoer for any of the small things such as this. After all, the San Jose Sharks have all but clinched a playoff spot. There’s just some odd reason that he’d not play these three together more. It could have to do with the lines defense, which they’ve given up 4 goals. That’s an issue with most coaches.
Hopefully, DeBoer uses this line a lot more frequently when Kane comes back. It’d be nice if we continue to see the Meier, Pavelskj, Couture line produce at this pace. Obviously, the defense plays a major role, but they are still scoring the goals.
It’s nothing new to San Jose Sharks fans to see this line produce. They’ve just been so good lately. It’s hard envisioning them with anyone else. This is the line DeBoer needs to roll within the playoffs. If Pavelski, Couture, and Meier have this chemistry, the Western Conference better watch out.
Daniel is a guru of baseball and basketball prospects. He’s a very experienced Amusement Park traveler as well. Follow him and his hot takes on Insta @dgentleman9288
