Lee won’t play 3rd line

Both middle 6 lines get the same ice time so it doesn’t really matter

That’s fair

In this scenario I’d expect the lines to look like this

Milano-Barzal-Wahlstrom
Lee-Nelson-Beauvillier
Bailey-Pageau-Palmieri
Parise-Cizikas-Bellows

The Lee-Nelson-Beau line was awful, I wouldn’t run that back again.

With it being a contract season for Barzal and the Isles look to be a playoff pretender, you may not want to give Barzal a potential scoring talent to watch his point total increase.

Every extra 5 points Barzal can add to his career average this up coming season will equal another $1 million AAV onto his next deal.

Or they could run this one

Beauvillier-Barzal-Wahlstrom
Lee-Nelson-Bailey
Milano-Pageau-Palmieri
Parise-Cizikas-Bellows

Or this one

Milano-Barzal-Wahlstrom
Lee-Nelson-Bailey
Beauvillier-Pageau-Palmieri
Parise-Cizikas-Bellows

I’d rather Barzal put up 85 pts and get 10 mill AAV than put up 70 pts and sign for 8.5 mill AAV

Bailey should not be anywhere near the top 6

I’m just guessing that’s what Lambert would do. Also bailey was pretty good with Nelson and Lee anyway.

Where's the $1 million AAV Ahl enforcer ?

He should be on the team, LOL

This might be the year he finally gets put on waivers

Is Ross Johnston dating a family member of Lou's ?

How else does a "Slapshot" wannabe sign a 8 year deal worth $8.4 million.

Hopefully lambert is different. That was almost 4 years ago, 4 years ago Jamie Benn was an elite top liner

Ross Johnston hit the jackpot. If he was a free agent I don’t think any AHL team would even give him a deal. Lou (and Trotz) basically gave him a contract because he’s a likeable guy who can fight. It’s insane. I think the 4 year deal was so Lou fan guarnatee he passes through waivers

IK u don’t like him, but Josh Bailey will never be the reason any team makes or misses the playoffs lol

You’re wrong on both statements, Bailey just sucks (for the last two seasons) , I don’t dislike him. At his age , playing him in a top 6 role on a lot of teams could be the difference between making the playoffs

One of those seasons they made the conference finals lol

That was a long time ago. Bailey is old by hockey standards and is coming off a season where he was one of the worst two way forwards in the NHL

He also had Covid tbh — and Chara/Greene on defense

Bailey had the most favorable deployment out of any isles forward.

How favorable can any deployment be if Chara or Greene is on the roster lol. I’m half joking here but still.

Anders Lee and Barzal were his two most frequent linemates. He got to play PP1 and late in games where he picked up a few empty net points. He got a ton of offensive zone starts and it still didn’t matter because the puck was going the other way immediately

Lee wasn’t great with Barzal last year, and Lee/Bailey weren’t a good fit together. Those two r way too slow to play with Barzy.

Thats just flat out wrong. They dominated when they were together, that was the only bright spot last year.