I think it’s a bad idea
Suzuki-Caufield is our legit 1st line
We have enough depth to change the 2nd and 3rd line to find good chemistry

Habs : We finally have a good one young duo for the next 10 years
Some habs fans : Lets split them

As much as I loved watching them in the playoffs last year, that's a pretty small sample size to say they'll be a duo for the next 10 years lol.

It will be Caufield's first full season, so there's undoubtedly going to be some ups and downs. Putting him on a somewhat sheltered 3rd line with a steady guy like Toffoli wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. It would also give Poehling a chance to produce with solid linemates and Caufield would still get PP1 minutes.

Let's not forget that Suzuki-Drouin was a decent duo as well, and I think Anderson works well with that duo. The 2nd line is then setup similarly to the 90-24-11 trio.

I'd rather we gave the opposition more than one line to shut down.

Where's the gamebreaker on lines 2-3 if Caufield isn't there? It will be solid possession with mediocre production.

Toffoli, Gallagher Hoffman? We have lots of depth on the wing i would much rather keep Suzuki and Caufield together and only if absolutely necessary break them apart. 20 games is a small sample size, so lets first see if they can continue that chemistry instead of just assuming it will fail.

Drouin and/or Suzuki should have at least one shooter on their line(s). If they are on the same line, you'd probably want Toffoli with them (if not Caufield).

Those guys aren't gamebreakers.

I'm not assuming it will fail, I'm just preparing for when they inevitably get split up at some point this season. Everyone assumes it's set in stone and it will work perfectly, but Dom won't hesitate to split them up if they start slow or if/when Caufield experiences the growing pains that come with a full rookie season.

Anderson has plenty of finish and I like him being the powerhorse that line would need. I think all three complement each other very well and you have the potential for three 20+ goal scorers on that line.

Wouldn't mind seeing Anderson with Suzuki and Caufield, just not with Suzuki and Drouin.

they all should be in the 25-30 goal range which is probably where caufield hopefully ends up. And if you expect caufield to have growing pains then that would imply he isnt yet at that gamebreaker stage on a consistent basis so wouldnt that negate the whole reason for spliting him and suzuki up? I think the upside of the two of them building upon the chemistry they had in the playoff is what has the most upside out of any of these scenarios for the habs so there's really no reason not to play them together.

He has gamebreaking ability, but the struggle will be consistency. Only a handful of players can step into their rookie season and be a gamebreaker every single night. There will be nights where he simply won't be able to bring it on the 1st line, which is fine, because we have the depth to place him elsewhere and still have him (and others) succeed. The bottom line is you're naive if you think Caufield will play 82 games with Suzuki this year, so what are your options when they're split?

My option is splitting them is stupid, i'm well aware it will happen because habs are notoriously bad at letting their young players play through their struggles, but i think its a mistake to split them out barring some horrible stretch by one of the two of them. If you do have to break them up its irrelevant who you place him with because theres only one center on the team with the vision to play off of caufield's ability to get into open spaces and create chances so if you move him off suzuki's then i dont see it mattering where he goes, if its on Dvoraks wing but then Dvorak cant be sent out in a defensive role which doesnt work. and if you put caufield with evans or poehling and expect him to play his way out of a slump ( assuming thats what caused him to moved away from suzuki) then thats also insane.

So even occasionally placing him on a "3rd line" where the competition level is lower, with a cerebral and defensively responsible player like Toffoli, and a well-rounded centre prospect like Poehling, is "INSANE"? Gotcha.

I guess he's not the prospect we all thought if there's only one guy he can play with.

you completely missed the point of what i said. Its insane you move a guy down to try and get him out of a slump, thats litterally hurt most of the prospects we have brought through the system over the last decade. Wouldnt it make more sense to cycle the LW on that line in an effort to jump start the two best young players and let them grow together? and theres a different between him only being able to play with one player "which i didnt say" and him having the best chance of success with a center that complement his skill set perfectly. So as i said if Caufield isnt playing with suzuki then all three other center on the roster (non of which are play makers) have no big upside between them as potential line mates for him so it doesnt matter where he slots in. And you didnt say occasionaly placing him in the third you said breaking them up them up to spread out the office. I think the offence will be at its best with those two together and guys like hoffman toffoli gallagher and hopefully anderson too will still be able to get their production throughout the lineup.

You're telling me I'm the one missing the point? LOL... I'll be back to see you implode when they're split.

again i agree that they will probably be split i'm arguing that its the wrong thing to do. Are you unable to read? lol

Your writing is pretty hard to read honestly.

my bad, i will bring it down to your level

habs better with caufield-suzuki together, habs worse with them apart.... simple enough? lol

notice that didnt say that theres no chance they get split up, and also would be shocked if they spent the whole year together.

Simply put, you "would be shocked if they spent the whole year together", but you're not ready to discuss what a lineup would look like with them split, because "it doesn't matter where Caufield slots in"? Very shortsighted.

yes i think Camfield's numbers between the other three centers would be similar across the board, and therefore it wouldn't matter where he slotted in for his production, assuming he still gets plenty of pp time.

But back to the original point. for the hab's to do this to balance out the scoring, i think that's wrong and that in the end the habs total offensive production would be lower with those two seperated than with them playing together.

So it's "insane" to play him with any other centre, but his production would be similar with any centre.

If you think about the Tampa series, they used the Kucherov line against 73-14-22 and they weren't as effective as they'd been in the first 3 rounds. Other teams will undoubtedly use their top line against 14 & 22 this season and, paired with the inconsistency/growing pains/etc. that any reasonable person would expect in Caufield's rookie season, AND the fact that the Habs like to roll four balanced lines, you need an alternative. This is my alternative. Don't like it? Fine. But your argument is basically that there is no alternative, which I think is absurd and shortsighted. But at this point if I say "black", you're gonna say "white", so unless you have anything meaningful to say, I think it's time you chased your tail elsewhere.

Im not against spitting them, but you made 2 errors.

1. Caufield needs a puck moving center. Poehling cant feed him.

2. Giving more ice time to Hoffman over Toffoli is a recepie for désastre.

Back to the drawing board!

1. Playmaking is one of the stronger parts of his game, as has been noted at every level.

2. The Habs roll four lines. Hoffman isn't getting more ice time than Toffoli.

Back to the drawing board!

Well would you look at that... it took four periods for Suzuki and Caufield to get split up. INSANITY!!!!!