One of the key moves made by Martin St. Louis in the first series against the Tampa Bay Lightning was inserting Brendan Gallagher into the lineup for Oliver Kapanen. However, with a new opponent, and one who plays a different style, it is time for the Montreal Canadiens' head coach to go back to the rookie with a new line.
Kapanen had spent most of the regular season at center on the second line for the Canadiens and had 22 goals and 15 assists while playing every game. The rookie was also very productive against the Sabres in the regular season, with two goals in the four games he played against them.
In the first four games of the series, Kapanen struggled and was moved around a bit. He would have no points and only three shots on goal while seeing his average time on ice drop to only 8:39 during this stretch.
The Canadiens made the switch after Game 4 and went with the veteran Brendan Gallagher, who brings more physicality and it seemed to be a boost for the team.
Montreal Canadiens should try out the 'Kid Line' against the Buffalo Sabres
Now that the Canadiens are past the Lightning, they are set to play the Buffalo Sabres, who play a little more open, which creates some more offensive chances. This could be a great chance for Martin St. Louis to shake up some of the lines to match what the Buffalo Sabres have.
One of the ways they could do that is by inserting Oliver Kapanen back into the lineup and pairing him with Juraj Slafkovsky and Ivan Demidov.
These three had the second-most minutes together during the regular season with the second-highest xGoals For at 16.1, behind only the line of Slafkovsky, Nick Suzuki, and Cole Caufield, according to MoneyPuck.
By inserting Kapanen back into the lineup and then moving Slafkovsky down, it gives the Canadiens two goal-scoring lines if Josh Anderson or Alex Newhook is moved to the top line with Suzuki and Caufield. This opens the door for a line of Zachary Bolduc, Jake Evans, and Alexandre Texier for the third line and a fourth line with Philip Danault, Kirby Dach, and either Anderson or Newhook.
Using these four lines, it gives the Canadiens some balance but also an ability to put one of the Bottom 6 lines against the Sabres' top line as they try to limit what they can do in this series.
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