Why play D.Shore on the 4th line instead of the 3rd line? Pitlick shouldn't be on the 3rd. If given enough ice time with good linemates, Shore could end up with 45-50pts this season. Let him play with Comeau and Spezza. That would be a great 3rd line!

The Stars will be starting with Spezza on the 2nd line. Montgomery is going to do whatever he can to revitalize his career, after last season. Whether he stays there long term is TBD, but Spezza will start on the 2nd line. And i don't see Hintz starting with the Stars out of training camp. He's good enough, but with the Stars already having Smith, Shore, Dickinson, and Ritchie on the roster, I don't see Hintz having a spot. All 4 of these guys would have to clear waivers to go to the AHL, and Dallas isn't going to risk losing one of these guys for free in favor of Hintz, a guy who can stay in the AHL and be an injury call-up. We won't see him full-time until 2019-2020



In regards to the Shore/Pitlick situation, the reason Pitlick will stay on the 2nd line is because of the chemistry he has with Faksa. Last season, the Stars Roussel-Faksa-Pitlick line was the Stars best shutdown line. It was absolute nightmare for opposing top lines. This season, Comeau is a solid upgrade over Roussel, and that line will again, be a nightmare to play against. A line of Comeau-Faksa-Pitlick would be extremely strong in the defensive end, and they will be good enough in the offensive end. Shore was one of the worst forwards on the team last season, by most defensive metrics. As it stands right now, the Stars have an elite scoring line (Benn-Seguin-Radulov), a 2nd line that has the potential, depending on Spezza, to be a well above average scoring line (Janmark-Spezza-Nichushkin), an extremely good shutdown line (Comeau-Faksa-Pitlick), and a Swiss Army Knife of a 4th line (Shore, Dickinson, Smith, Ritchie, Hanzal).