Fourth Line: Cole Smith -- Michael McCarron -- Colton SIssons
Finishing things up for the Predators is the identity line, which has become a staple for many teams, including ones that go far in the playoffs. Trotz has mentioned that he is a believer in its importance, and Brunette showed the same by rolling with it for the last few months of last season.
Smith and McCarron are of course the first two to mention here, as they played on this line last year and are undoubtedly two of the more bruising, physical players on the Predators. McCarron especially had one of his better years in the NHL last year and has proven to be an glue guy in the locker room, so he absolutely should remain.
Sissons has to be the biggest question if one exists here, as some might not only wonder why he is so low in the lineup, but why he is on the wing instead of at center.
To answer the pure posiitional question, he has seen frequent action on the wing before and it has never seemed to bother him or affect his play. McCarron also played almost every game last year at center and did well, so Sissons' positional versatility makes it possible to keep McCarron put.
And in terms of someone who is an identity guy, let's just say that Sissons is tailor-made for the role on and off of the ice.
It always makes your team harder to play against when you have a trio of guys that can hit, kill penalties, and do the dirty work at both ends of the ice, and all three guys listed here can do so at a high level. If the Predators want to keep the identity line tradition going, this is the surest way they can do it.