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In this week’s instalment, we take a look at a couple of hot lines. Using Dobber’s Line Production Tool, we compared even-strength point production around the league over the past 10 games. I compiled a list of the highest scoring line for each team at even strength. Here’s the list…

Jake Guentzel – Sidney Crosby – Bryan Rust

To the surprise of absolutely no one, Sidney Crosby is a good hockey player who makes his teammates better. While coach Mike Sullivan likes to throw different wingers out with Sid the Kid every now and then, Bryan Rust and Jake Guentzel have been his line mates most frequently this year. Although this line has been particularly hot in the last ten games, they also lead the team in even-strength production on the season. In terms of their advanced stats, there’s really not too much to get excited about. The Guentzel-Crosby-Rust line controls about 51% of shots taken, 50% of scoring chances and 49% of high-danger opportunities. Although most of those numbers hover around average, they’ve managed to outscore their opponents 15-5 at even strength.

Considering how hot he was in his rookie season (2016-2017), Jake Guentzel disappointed many with his 48-point sophomore campaign (2017-2018).  This year, he’s on pace for 74 points! While he didn’t have the best start to 2018-2019, he has put up 26 points in his last 24 games. In those 26 games, he’s only been seeing about a minute on the power-play – which makes his numbers all the more impressive. With that being said, it’s hard to get too excited about Guentzel’s production for the rest of the season while his power-play time is limited. By no means am I saying he’s suddenly going to stop scoring, but I expect him to put up fewer points in the second half of the season than he did in the first. The 24-year-old is currently scoring on 17% of his shots, which seems a little bit high, but he’s also proven to be an efficient shooter so far in his young career.

Sidney Crosby play good hockey. Sidney Crosby score 19 point in last 12 game. Sidney Crosby on pace for 107-point season! Sidney Crosby capable of anything. Sidney Crosby play good hockey.

Bryan Rust holds fantasy value as long as he’s skating beside Sidney Crosby. Although his 19 points in 41 games don’t seem impressive, he recently had a seven-game hot streak in which he tallied 11 points (eight of which were goals). While his 14 minutes of ice-time (none of which are on the PP) don’t justify a spot on your roster, he certainly makes for a good streaming option amidst a scoring streak. In this last half of the season, I’m expecting about 20 points from him, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he put up 25.

Anthony Beauvillier – Mathew Barzal – Josh Bailey

If you expected the Islanders to be this good after John Tavares’s departure, please raise your hand. You’ll notice everyone with their hand up also has their pants on fire, because they’re lying. In all seriousness, I’m really surprised the Isles weren’t more negatively affected by the loss of Tavares. Not only have coach Barry Trotz and his strong defensive system improved the team’s ability to keep pucks out of the net, but they’re actually scoring too! I’m not ashamed to admit I was one of the haters that doubted Mathew Barzal. Sure, I knew the ‘kid’ was extremely talented after his rookie campaign and was going to take the league by storm in the coming years. But in his sophomore season? A season in which he’d be drawing tougher matchups without JT to shelter his minutes? Yeah, I never would have guessed that halfway through the year Barzal would have 38 points in 40 games. What else do you need to know about Barzal? Well, his shooting percentage is sustainable, he’s seeing about a minute more of ice time than last season, and he’s shooting the puck more than last season. He’s already a superstar in this league and will continue to be one for many years.

Anthony Beauvillier isn’t quite where we expected him to be in terms of production, but I think his second half of the season will be better than his first. While he was averaging 13 minutes of ice-time in his first 18 games, he’s been averaging 16 minutes in his last 21 games. Hopefully this upward trend continues as the team makes a push for the playoffs. It’s interesting to see that he has just one power-play point halfway through the 2018-2019 campaign. Last year he had eight through a full season and was seeing less time on the PP. He should start getting more points with the man advantage, which will boost his production going forward. Beauvillier is also shooting the puck more than last year, which should lead to good things if he keeps it up. Remember, he’s just 21 years old and this is his third season in the NHL. Some young guns need more time to develop than others. Whatever the case, I’d keep an eye on his production going forward as he might make a sneaky addition down the stretch.

Josh Bailey tallied 71 points in 75 games last season, a feat not many thought he would replicate this year. While he may not be able to score at quite that pace, he has managed 31 points in 40 games and is on track for a 64-point campaign. That production drop might be a result of the Islanders’ struggles with the man advantage. Last year, they were capitalizing on about 23% of their power-play opportunities. This year, their success rate sits slightly above 16%. Bailey had 31 points on the PP in 2017-2018 and is on pace for just 20 this season. This may be one area where the miss John Tavares, but they definitely have the talent to be more successful on the power-play. Keep an eye on this as the season progresses.

The advanced stats seem to consider this line above average. They control about 52% of shots, 55% of scoring chances, and 52% of high-danger opportunities while they’re on the ice.