What line will Dany Heatley play on?
Dec 29, 2013; Saint Paul, MN, USA; Minnesota Wild forward Dany Heatley (15) shoots during the second period against the New York Islanders at Xcel Energy Center. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports
Josh: Bruce Boudreau shuffles his lines so much that we could see Heatley play on each one of the four forward line this season. But if I had to pick, I would slot Heatley on one of the bottom two lines.
As much as I would love to see the former 50-goal scorer to return to his Atlanta Thrasher days, I feel like Heatley has little left in the tank. The tank isn’t empty, but there isn’t much left. If I were Boudreau, I would start Heatley off on the third line with Andrew Cogliano and Jakob Silfverberg.
Jason: I actually have no idea where Heatley plays because I have no idea which player has to come out of the lineup for him. It’s entirely possible he plays with Getzlaf and Perry on the top line, but I doubt Bruce Boudreau pencils him in there without him earning the spot in training camp and such. Besides, Boudreau can maximize offensive production from just about anybody, and he isn’t afraid of using the blender to mix-and-match different combinations.
If I had to pick a single line for Heatley to play on to start, it’d be as a bottom-six forward with Rickard Rakell and either Devante Smith-Pelly or Emerson Etem. But again, I really don’t know, considering the team has to choose between playing Matt Beleskey, Jakob Silfverberg, Patrick Maroon, Kyle Palmieri, and others. Wherever he ends up, he has to earn his ice time.
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