After struggling to find offense from their bottom six, the Pittsburgh Penguins may have finally found something in their third line.
It’s only been a few games, but the simple recall of Radim Zohorna has already made a world of difference for the Penguins’ depth.
Zohorna’s presence was noticed right away when he scored in his season debut, and the third line has looked like a threat ever since.
The line of Zohorna, Lars Eller, and Drew O’Connor played a huge role in the Penguins 4-0 win over the Colorado Avalanche.
Eller notched his first goal in a Penguins’ uniform and all three played outstanding on both ends of the rink.
While he may not have been rewarded with a point, head coach Mike Sullivan said that may have been the best game O’Connor’s ever played in the NHL.
“Just the way he tracked pucks, I thought his speed was really evident just tracking pucks from behind,” Sullivan said. “He stripped Cale Makar of the puck one time just tracking it from behind, and that’s not an easy task against a player of that caliber.”
One huge key that has been evident since Kyle Dubas began rebuilding the Penguins bottom six was a defensive mindset.
Each player in the bottom two lines definitely has a defensive prowess, but they need scoring, as well.
"This is the kind of effort and structure we need to play with every game," Eller said. "We can do some great things and still play fun hockey."
While we wait for the fourth line to find it’s jump, the third line is forming a nice chemistry at the perfect time.
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