Steve Zipay at Blue Notes reports that John Tortorella has configured a new third of Lisin-Anisimov-Higgins. This most likely means Ales Kotalik is headed back to fourth line duties.
On Lisin, Torts said...
"We see a lot of skill in him," the coach said..."sometimes I have to take a chance to put him in more offensive situations, if Higgins isn't going well or Cally isn't going. "
Tortorella also noted tonight was a big game for Chris Higgins "to get back on the right road."
Meanwhile, Andrew Gross at Ranger Rants says that Tortorella seemed to put second line right wing Ryan Callahan on notice by saying he hasn’t gotten quite the offensive production he wants out of him.
Gross adds that Tortorella also acknowledged Callahan’s importance to the team and said he has to be counted on as one of the top players.
...i have no problem with Torts going with the hot hand in Lisin, who it seems was able to take a deep breath while playing on the fourth line and find his game.
...i hope Torts isn't expecting too much offense from Callahan because he is no more than a 20-25 goal scorer.
3 comments:
I don't know about Cally's ceiling as 20-25 goals. He was all over the ice when Torts took over last season and looked like a potential 30-35 goal scorer. He's only had moments of being that player thus far this season. He's been good, but I think Torts is right, he could be a bit better.
I think its a mistake to think he can be that prolific a scorer. He is a solid two-way player, but I don't think he'll become the sniper you may expect.
I'm more than happy with 20-25 goals, top five in the league in hits and hustle on every shift.
I think playing with Drury-Higgins his ceiling is 20-25. No playmaker on that line, so scoring the rebound/scramble goals he's so good at are all he has.
Post a Comment