PHYSICAL PLAYERS BOLSTER EASTERN TEAMS’ TOP LINES
Tampa’s Miller and Washington’s Wilson have been key players in the post-season
For anyone questioning why Zach Hyman was playing on the top line with the Toronto Maple Leafs this season, take a look at the two teams in the Eastern Conference final.
In Tampa Bay, J.T. Miller is playing alongside Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov. In Washington, it’s Tom Wilson with Evgeny Kuznetsov and Alex Ovechkin.
On the surface, it looks like a classic case of “one of these things is not like the other.” But having a physical, no-frills winger to balance out two skilled scorers has become a recipe for success, as long as they can also think and play the game at a high level.
“You just can’t put a physical guy out there,” Lightning head coach Jon Cooper said. “You have to put a guy who has hockey sense and is skilled enough to make these plays. I think Miller definitely has that. And I look across the hallway and Wilson’s definitely evolved his game to be able to make plays with those guys.”
The stats would back up that assumption. Miller, who was acquired at the trade deadline from the New York Rangers, entered the conference final with seven points in 10 games. Wilson, who missed three games because of a suspension, has seven points in nine games.
“Every team has different components, every player has different strengths,” Capitals head coach Barry Trotz said. “Tom is a big, strong man. There is no denying that he has a physical element. There’s not many players like him in the league. But he also has a skill element, which is why he’s playing with those top players as well.”
Who knows, maybe having three skilled players would make Tampa’s and Washington’s top lines even more deadly. That’s what Boston did by having three 30-goal scorers playing together. But a balanced attack is part of why the Lightning and the Capitals have advanced this far.
It’s also why Hyman has found a permanent spot next to Auston Matthews and William Nylander. Hyman scored 15 goals and put up 40 points this season. Could that line have produced more with Mitch Marner on the wing ? Perhaps, but how would they get the puck?
“The other two guys are looking for the puck, so someone has to go in and get it for them and then make plays to them,” Cooper said. “Miller can definitely do that.”
WILSON STICKING TO PHYSICAL STYLE
Though Wilson missed three games for delivering a hit to the head of Pittsburgh’s Zach AstonReese in the second round — it was the third time this season he was suspended — the repeat offender has no plans of toning down his physical play.
“It’s a physical time of year,” said Wilson.
“I don’t want to change my game too much. Our team needs that energy and needs that physicality and that’s why I’m here. That’s my role. Part of my job is to finish checks hard, clean and create space for my linemates. Obviously, I don’t want to stray too far from that.”
The other two guys are looking for the puck, so someone has to go in and get it for them and then make plays to them.
POINT PUTTING UP POINTS FOR TAMPA BAY
Don’t call Brayden Point a shut-down centre. With four goals and 10 points, he was Tampa Bay’s second-leading scorer after two rounds. That he did it while keeping New Jersey’s and Boston’s top players mostly quiet means he will see a lot of Ovechkin and Kuznetsov in this series.
“I don’t think of it as a shutdown role,” said Point, who recorded 32 goals and 66 points this season. “I think you just play and you obviously think of your net first, but you just play hockey.”
Keeping it simple was a reason why Boston’s Patrice Bergeron, David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand scored just four goals in the last four games of the last series. “The one thing they had to get out of their heads was they thought they had to outscore the other line,” said Cooper. “The big thing is, don’t let them score. And then whatever happens after that happens. It’s weird how it turned out for them, but eventually they started to score.”
JON COOPER, Tampa Bay Lightning head coach