Ken’s Lineup
Smith-Karlsson-Stone
Hanifin-Sedoff
Schmid
I started the lineup by building around Karlsson and Smith. There’s no better dynamic duo in VGK history, both offensively and defensively, and to get them for just $7 seems like a steal. Amazingly, Stone has never played with those two but we all know it would be an incredible 200-foot line.
Because I was so confident with the defensive abilities up front, I went for some offense on the back-end with Hanifin. His partner is a bit of an unknown for many VGK fans but a guy who has looked really good in the AHL. Christoffer Sedoff is a smooth skater who is a good decision-maker in his own end. I’m definitely going out on a limb with a young defenseman and the backup goalie, but hopefully, having two former Selke candidates on the ice with them will be enough to hold strong.
Jason’s Lineup
Saad-Eichel-Marner
McNabb-Korczak
Schmid
At first glance my top line looks uneven. Two incredibly gifted forwards in their prime with an aging, undersized Stanley Cup-winning veteran. It doesn’t appear to be a dominant first line. That’s unless you have a dynamic duo like Jack Eichel and Mitch Marner. This Golden Knights lineup will control the pace, possess the puck more than the opposition, and generate dangerous scoring chances. All Brandon Saad has to do is stay onside and shoot the puck. The cost-efficient wing could score 20 goals in his sleep alongside Eichel and Marner, maybe more. You want someone to shoot? Saad will shoot.
My defensive pairing is safe and simple. Don’t expect much offense from Brayden McNabb or Kaeden Korczak; all I need for them to do is go out and govern. Together, they would artfully suffocate and lock down opponents in their own end. Admittedly, I am weak in net, so I need two bruisers clearing out traffic and blocking shots. This team will get that from Korczak and McNabb. As for Akira Schmid, I was forced to go cheap to balance out the cost of my blueline. I have witnessed VGK win big games, playoff series, and a Stanley Cup championship with different goaltenders. With multiple star two-way forwards and a pair of defensive defensemen, any goalie would feel highly confident in the crease.
Alex the Intern’s Lineup
Howden-Eichel-Lavoie
McNabb-Korczak
Hill
I needed to start from the net out on this; goaltending is pretty important in the game of hockey, so there goes 25% of the budget to Adin Hill. Moving on to defense, there doesn’t need to be a ton of offensive firepower. McNabb and Korczak are solid options to protect the front of the net as well as chip in offensively on occasion.
The forward group is where I had the most trouble deciding who to go with. After going back and forth on whether I should move all players around, I landed on Howden, Eichel, and Lavoie. Eichel can make players around him much better, so the hope is Lavoie can just be in the right places at the right time and we’ve seen how Howden can play with fast centers.
*Which lineup do you think is best? And, post your own lineups in the comments now!*
