Vegas Golden Knights: Possible Line Combinations Part 4
The NHL preseason is starting in less than a month, therefore, the Vegas Golden Knights need to figure out their lines.
In my previous three articles, I gave three different lineups that the Vegas Golden Knights could use during the season. Today we will see how the lineup will look like with a couple of prospects.
Possible Forward Lines
James Neal – William Karlsson – Jonathan Marchessault
Teemu Pulkkinen – Vadim Shipachyov – Alex Tuch
David Perron – Cody Eakin – Reilly Smith
Erik Haula – Oscar Lindberg – Brendan Leipsic
This lineup has a couple of young guys spread out in it. Centering the top line is Karlsson. His wingers are Neal and Marchessault. Karlsson could have a breakout season, playing alongside of his linemates. Together they would be a scoring line for Vegas, with Karlsson as the playmaker for Neal and Marchessault.
The second line of Pulkkinen, Shipachyov and Tuch is very interesting. All three have little to no NHL experience. That could lead them to surprising a lot of teams. Shipachyov is an above average playmaker, which he showed in the KHL. With Pulkkinen and Tuch being able to put the puck in the net, this line could shock a lot of hockey fans.
Perron, Eakin and Smith make up the third line.. They would be a great two-way line, all have defensive abilities and could play on Vegas’ PK lines as well. Perron and Eakin would lead the line and could help bring Smith’s game back up from last season.
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The fourth line consists of Haula, Lindberg and Leipsic. This could be another scoring line for the Knights, with Haula and Lindberg setting up Leipsic. Like the second line, they could surprise a lot of teams.
Possible Defence Lines
Jake Bischoff – Jason Garrison
Brayden McNabb – Colin Miller
Nate Schmidt – Deryk Engelland
As stated in my last article, and the others before that, the Knights have a lot of NHL capable defenceman. The top line of Bischoff and Garrison could be very interesting. Bischoff could surprise a lot of teams since he has never played in the NHL. Vegas could pair him with Garrison to use Garrison as a mentor. This move could help both Vegas and Bischoff in the long run.
McNabb and Miller make up the second pairing. They could be a fast duo for the Knights and be an effective second pairing. With McNabb’s defensive abilities and Miller’s offensive abilities, they could complement each other well.
The third pairing of Schmidt and Engelland, could be a good duo. Engelland has a lot of NHL experience and could help Schmidt grow his game. Schmidt still makes mistakes that he should not be, because of that, Vegas could use Engelland to help him fix his mistakes.
Possible Goaltenders
Oscar Dansk
Marc-Andre Fleury
What would happen if Fleury can not handle a starting role anymore? Vegas could end up using him in a backup role while pushing one of their other goalies into a starting role. While I do not think that this would ever happen, it is fun to look at the what-ifs.
Dansk has never played in the NHL but he could make a Matt Murray 2.0 on Fleury and surprise Vegas. He could become an NHL starter but I do not believe that will happen in the next three to four seasons.
Next: Expansion Draft: Carolina Hurricanes (6/30)
Overall, the Knights are a new NHL team and their players could surprise a lot of teams with how well they work together.