October 22, 2015 | Sports
After 6 games this year, the Canadiens have gone undefeated. A huge part of their success goes out to their second line “The SEGway line.” They are called the SEGway because of the intial on the last name of the three players that fill up the line. The SEGway line features Lars Eller at left wing, Alex Galchenyuk at centre and newcomer Alexander Semin at right wing. Although it’s a short sample, the three men have potential to do a lot together. The three played great together against the Bruins on October 15th. Here are the highlights.
This is a line that has a little bit of every skill on it. What Eller brings is amazing puck control, a big body that can throw hits. He is also the defensive specialist out of the three line mates, but that’s not knocking on Galchenyuk and Semin who aren’t necessarily that bad on the defensive side of the puck. Eller has just been playing in a defensive role for years which gives him the advantage on the others who have both had very sheltered offensive careers thus far. Despite his defensive ability his puck control is his best asset, he has the ability to hold players off while controlling the puck. What Eller needs to work on is his vision as he often makes bad plays when passing the puck. He should be able to notch 45-50 points if he remains within the team’s top 6 forwards this season.
Alex Galchenyuk likely the anchor of the line, has the potential to be a true elite player in this league. At 21 years old, Galchenyuk who spent most of his career at left wing, has finally got his chance to take the next step at his natural centre position. He is a player that has it all, he isn’t small, he has the vision and the hands to be a great playmaker. Besides Max Pacioretty (who is the sniper of the team), Galchenyuk likely has the best wrist shot on the team. He may need to work on the accuracy before he can become a true 30 goal scorer in this league. Galchenyuk will also need to improve more on his defensive skills before becoming the number 1 centre, the Habs were expecting him to become when they drafted him 3rd overall in the 2012 NHL entry draft. Don’t be surprised if he leads the way on this line and gets 25 goals 60 points this season, he is on the verge of a breakout year and this could be the year.
Alex Semin is the guy on this line that is looking to bounce back from a horrible season in which he scored only 6 goals in 57 games. Semin hadn’t missed the 20-goal mark since his rookie season in the 2003-04 NHL season. What he brings to the table is a lethal shot that makes opposing goalies cringe. The scary part is he probably has the second best shot to Galchenyuk on his line. The duo will cause a double threat offensively if they stay together. Semin also has an underrated passing ability which having Galchenyuk on his line could start to make teams start needing to double team one making the other open for a pass in the slot. They will score lots of goals if that occurs. What Semin needs to improve is his speed, he seems to always be trailing behind his two line mates. Despite that he should be able to hit 50 points and get back to 20 goals if this current trend between the three players continue.
This line gives less pressure towards the first line who was often relied on to get every goal over the last 2 seasons. Will they remain together throughout the entire season is remained to be seen but one thing is for sure this line has serious potential to cause serious damage this upcoming season for however long it lasts. What it remains to be seen is if they will continue to dominate the opposition, or whether they will lose chemistry and falter.