Every team in the PWHL felt the shake up of expansion. Now that the dust has settled, here's a look at the top line each PWHL team could ice for opening night.
Following PWHL expansion, there wasn't a team in the league that saw their top forward lines remain untouched.
The only team in the league with a top line returning is the Ottawa Charge, who will bring back Gabbie Hughes, Emily Clark, and Mannon McMahon, who were the league's most frequent trio last season combining in 24 of Ottawa's 30 games.
Looking at their production, however, the trio had only 18 goals last year, and 43 points.
With shuffled lines across the league, including an influx of talent, here's a look at the potential top lines across the league.
1. PWHL Seattle
Similar to Vancouver, this is all about the right mix. With some pre-built chemistry from previous teams, there are a few logical combinations we might see Seattle try early. Among those are the duo of Alex Carpenter and Jessie Eldridge coming from the New York Sirens, and Boston Fleet wingers Hilary Knight and Hannah Bilka. If you were to put Danielle Serdachny in between Bilka and Knight, and Julia Gosling on the opposite wing with Eldridge and Carpenter, you've got two top lines. It's hard to imagine Seattle not having one of, if not the most dangerous top line offensively in the league.
2. PWHL Vancouver
Will we see Sarah Nurse between Jennifer Gardiner and Tereza Vanisova, and a reunion of former teammates Hannah Miller, Michelle Karvinen, and Michela Cava? With these six forwards and the option to infuse Brooke McQuigge, Abby Boreen, or Izzy Daniel, Vancouver has an abundance of options up front. Head coach Brian Idalski will likely be shuffling his lines for a few weeks until something clicks. This is like entering a Michelin-star restaurant knowing only the finest ingredients are in stock, and waiting to see what flavors combine best. It's not a matter of 'if' a line will click, this is a 'who' and 'how quickly' situation.
3. Montreal Victoire
When two thirds of your top line is Marie-Philip Poulin and Laura Stacey, there's not a lot to worry about. What Montreal does with the other wing flanking Poulin is the real question. They could bring in Natalie Mlynkova, a creative and slippery rookie. Or they could shift Abby Roque to the wing and put together a frighteningly physical grouping. Lina Ljungblom got looks last season in the role, and could take a huge step this year and be the right fit. Montreal could also look to get Hayley Scamurra going on that unit. Whomever gels with Poulin and Stacey, it's going to be a fast and physical line that every team in the league will be circling in pre-game conversations.
4. Minnesota Frost
Losing Michela Cava puts a hole in Minnesota's roster. But Minnesota is returning Taylor Heise and Kendall Coyne Schofield who have consistently been paired up over the past two seasons. While Cava was their most impactful linemate, Grace Zumwinkle also saw time on the line, and if she can bounce back after second-season struggles, this could be a potent trio. The other option on the left side is for Minnesota to trial run rookie Abby Hustler alongside Heise and Coyne Schofield. Given her consistent NCAA production, it could give the Frost a new and effective look up front. Britta Curl-Salemme could factor in as well, although it would mean breaking up Coyne Schofield and Heise, which isn't likely.
5. Toronto Sceptres
Daryl Watts will be one-third of any top line in Toronto. On the opposite wing, inaugural MVP Natalie Spooner wants to have a big season. She's got a lot on the line, and so does Toronto. who need their game-changing star to find her form in her first full season back from ACL surgery. Jesse Compher could also take the top line spot on the right side. The real question for Toronto is who plays down the middle on line one. The edge if it's Spooner on the wing is likely Emma Maltais, as the pair had good chemistry with Sarah Nurse in year one. If it's Blayre Turnbull down the middle, Compher might be the pick. Don't be surprised if it's none of the above, and Toronto rolls out Emma Gentry between Watts and Spooner or Compher. This team got bigger and more physical in the offseason. Bringing a heavy top line would make sense to set the tone.
6. New York Sirens
Youth and talent are prevalent. Can the kids figure it out against the best in the world? That's the question. Keeping either Sarah Fillier or Kristyna Kaltounkova in the middle on New York's top line makes sense, with the other shifting to the wing. Fillier scored in abundance last year on the wing, and Kaltounkova is known as a physical two-way pivot. If they were the duo, bringing another young player like Anne Cherkowski to the top group makes sense. It's likely New York will look for Casey O'Brien to center her own line, but that's not a guarantee, especially if they can find an offensive combination for Kristin O'Neill. New York's issue is going to be depth scoring, not top-end talent, but even their second line will have some puncture wounds in it, particularly after the team learned MaKenna Webster would not be playing this year and is instead chasing her field hockey dreams. Add in Noora Tulus going back to Europe, and the roster has question marks up front. New York doesn't have a lot of assets left to make a move, so this will be about finding chemistry and giving confidence to their young stars.
7. Ottawa Charge
There's no telling where this top line will come from. Don't be surprised if Emily Clark is part of it with Gabbie Hughes in the middle. Ottawa could run back McMahon on the right side hoping for depth in their attack rather than loading up one group. They could also look to jumpstart Elizabeth Giguere, a former Patty Kazmaier winner, or hope for some rejuvenation from Brianne Jenner, who was nearly invisible for much of last season. The other hope in Ottawa is for a stroke of luck in the form of Anna Shokhina and Fanuza Kadirova bringing their chemistry from the ZhHL and Russia's national team to the PWHL. There was conversation following their selection of putting Katerina Mrazova between the Russian duo. There's also a chance Ottawa tries to elevate Rebecca Leslie or Anna Meixner, who both showed they might have more in the tank in playoffs. They have some promising pieces, but no clear top trio in Ottawa.
8. Boston Fleet
There's really no simple answer in Boston. Ideally the Fleet will move Alina Müller into her natural position down the middle, but that means she won't be playing with Susanna Tapani. Still, Boston will need to spread their top two forwards if they hope to have any kind of attack. The answer for Boston rests in hope. Hoping that Chloe Aurard can reclaim her chemistry from college with Müller. Hoping that Loren Gabel, Jamie Lee Rattray, Hannah Brandt, or rookie Ella Huber can step in and step up. Huber is a probably candidate for a left wing role up front. Boston needs to strike it lucky somewhere in this lineup. Don't expect a lot of scoring in Boston.