Kovy to Centre?

nietche · Veteran Member

Kovy to Centre?

superhab · Guru

Intrestigly enough im sure i recall Kovy playing center for the Rangers back when he started his career. (I could be wrong... BUt i doubt it)

steevo · Member

honestly this early in the season i dont think it would hurt to try for a game or two..

adam13 · Member

I think the answer is simply to wait it out and see...I like the 1 and 3 lines too much right now to start messing with chemistry.

Lets see what happens against Philly before we start moving Kovy and Sammy all over the place..

After all didnt someone once say 3rd times the charm.

Traveling Hab · Veteran Member

I agree with Adam, except that I think the 5 game mark is the minimum we need to give Kovalev. He ALWAYS takes a while to feel out new linemates, and juggling his line too soon would be like sabotaging him.

Although as a juggle, putting him at centre is a very interesting idea, and I like him on the same line as Lats, since the complement each other's styles perfectly. Dangling playmaker and a crash the net physical guy with good scoring hands. With that line combination I revise my Kovalev points total prediction from 30 goals and 50 assists to 25 goals and 65 assists

macneil · Guru

not to be an ass but i would consider the source and reason behind the statement . they want to move him to center to allow gui onto the 2nd line . he has played in 2 games , had over 17 minutes of icetime , has 0 hits and 0 shots , he has done nothing to promt a promotion or a demotion from plecs , they are creating chances but no finish .

barry33 · Guru

macneil wrote:

not to be an ass but i would consider the source and reason behind the statement . they want to move him to center to allow gui onto the 2nd line . he has played in 2 games , had over 17 minutes of icetime , has 0 hits and 0 shots , he has done nothing to promt a promotion or a demotion from plecs , they are creating chances but no finish .

Pleks made a good point on the radio today. He said that both Kovalev and Samsonov want the puck and want to carry it. But that is the centers job normally. The ideal guy between those two is Koivu because he is a playmaker. I really feel that it is too early to judge how that line is. Having said that, I am not sure that it is a good fit in the long run. If everyone wants the puck, who is going to do the dirty work to get it to them? It may just be a matter of the whole line adjusting. But to move Kovalev to Center at this stage of his career would be a mistake IMHO. The answer is to find a center that fits there.

plouf · Guru

In response to barry's ghost,

it's never too late to switch a guy's position.
Not that I'm arguing for this (I don't think Kovalev is a centre), but look at Elias, for example. Or Demitra. Both guys switched to centre recently, and it's worked.

Traveling Hab · Veteran Member

Not to give you a hard time on your return, Barry, but how would Koivu fit between those two? Koivu likes to hold onto the puck and then dish it off to someone who is in front of the net or another good scoring position. If he were on a line with two other players who do that (Samsonov and Kovalev) it would be as bad as when Ribeiro was there (well, maybe slightly better since Koivu is a better and playmaker the Ribs is).

In my opinion the ideal guy for a line like that is a pure finisher, and other than Ryder who is already on a working line, the only finishers we have is Lats. Plekanec has a good shot though, and they should be given the chance to feel each other out. I agree that Lats hasn't done anything to earn a promotion, but he may get on just because we are short of players like him in the organization.

barry33 · Guru

Traveling Hab wrote:

Not to give you a hard time on your return, Barry, but how would Koivu fit between those two? Koivu likes to hold onto the puck and then dish it off to someone who is in front of the net or another good scoring position. If he were on a line with two other players who do that (Samsonov and Kovalev) it would be as bad as when Ribeiro was there (well, maybe slightly better since Koivu is a better and playmaker the Ribs is).

In my opinion the ideal guy for a line like that is a pure finisher, and other than Ryder who is already on a working line, the only finishers we have is Lats. Plekanec has a good shot though, and they should be given the chance to feel each other out. I agree that Lats hasn't done anything to earn a promotion, but he may get on just because we are short of players like him in the organization.

Good points. I guess in my view Koivu would be the best of what we have to put there, only because he is very unselfish with the puck (just ask Higgins or Ryder). But it is not time to get the panic button out. My problem with moving Kovalev there would be the fact that your center needs to be your pivot..your guy who can read the ice and the play and dish it off. Kovy can do all those things, he just does not care for the dishing off part lol. Give them 10 games or so and see what happens.

Traveling Hab · Veteran Member

barry33 wrote:

My problem with moving Kovalev there would be the fact that your center needs to be your pivot..your guy who can read the ice and the play and dish it off. Kovy can do all those things, he just does not care for the dishing off part lol. Give them 10 games or so and see what happens.

True. That does make Kovalev going to centre a non-ideal option, but I still have faith in Pleks getting it going with them. He looked great there at the end of preseason, and it has only been a two game downturn. And if that doesn't work, I guess I am open to trying almost anything to get that second line going except break up the first, since we need two strong lines for the season, and we have enough odds and ends to make very good third and fourth lines no matter who is on the second.