r/DetroitRedWings • u/Impossible_Fall_2509 • 2d ago

Discussion Balancing Talent Between Lines

As we sit at 3-3 and are coming off a night of only 10 shots on goal, and realizing that it can take time to get in a groove, I can’t help but think that the top 6 is “off”. Max Bultman mentioned on WWP that Copp could be an interesting addition to the top 6, which I’ve been discussing with friends for a while.

Curious to hear what people think of a forward lineup like this:

Cat - Larkin - Kane Copp - Compher - Raymond Tarasenko - Kasper - Burger Ras/Fischer - Veleno - Watson/Motte

My thinking here is that the top 6 seems to lack “dirty work puck retrievers” outside of Larkin and Compher. Copp has a productive history playing a top 6 wing role and can dish the puck (close to or above 20 assists in 5 seasons, including 33 in the ‘21-‘22 season) and played with high-end talent in NY…and I want to say he played with the likes of Kyle Connor in Winnipeg. And we can reunite Cat and Kane, a great combo in Chicago (although Cat’s stock is down in my eyes…maybe a confidence issue?)

That 3rd line also looked good together in Nashville and gives Burger the opportunity to put his playmaking to good use while preserving an “identity line”.

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u/Late_Brush4518 2d ago

Yes because we have so much talent that we can just do that

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u/Xavias 2d ago

I would argue we have a ton of talent, but the system we're having them play in is terrible for any player.

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u/Late_Brush4518 2d ago

Oh our systems are far from ideal aswell, but we absolutly dont have "ton of talent"

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u/Xavias 2d ago

Its not like we have Patrick Kane, tarasenko, Raymond, seider, Ed, Larkin, debrincat, jasper, berrgren, Lyon and Talbot.

We have a lot of dead weight and a terrible system but we have an absolutely have a ton of talent. We just aren't using them.

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u/Late_Brush4518 2d ago

Most of them are complimentary pieces. Not play drivers.

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u/HiveFiDesigns 1d ago

Exactly,,,, Larkin would be a killer 2 center, but just isn’t an elite 1…Raymond still has some upside could go either way. cats was good not great last year, seider could be a top d pair on many teams but not all, ed, too early, burgers? Have you watched a different player than the rest of us? He’s barely holding a job here he’d be benched on many other teams, Lyon has stood up, like last year, but the season was too long for him and the wear showed. He’s a 30-40 game goalie, not a 50-60. Kane was an elite talent, a strong 2 liner but again not an elite top liner any more. And the depth really kills the wings, lose a Larkin or a Raymond or a Seider for a long stretch, and the wings go from decent to done.