Despite the fact the three hail from worlds away from one another, the chemistry has been quick. Chinakhov hopped onto the line late in the preseason after the injury to Boone Jenner, but the trio hasn’t missed a beat, turning into one of the best lines in the NHL in the early going.
They may be from different parts of the world, but they’ve found a common language on the ice.
“We speak in Spanish,” Chinakhov joked the other day.
Clearly, though, the three are on to something, and it all does start with communication. Chinakhov and Marchenko already have a relationship, of course, as they spend some time together in the offseason in Russia and have played together for the past two seasons in Columbus.
Monahan has come in and immediately been able to make an impact between the two talented snipers, and he said the key is in the relationship the three have already built.
“Honestly, I think it’s a lot of communication,” said Monahan, who couldn’t help but smile when talking about the personalities of the two Russian wings. “We talk a lot. I’m actually surprised by how much we’ve been talking. It’s going well. I think we can improve, help each other out and play a little bit closer together. Once chemistry really starts to kick in, I think we can be dangerous every night.”
The veteran center is understating things, though, because the trio has already been hard to handle for opponents. The impacts have been felt in traditional stats – the three have combined for seven goals and 18 points in the first five games, and outscored opponents 6-2 when on the ice at 5-on-5 – and in the analytics realm.
According to MoneyPuck.com, the line is the best in the NHL with at least 40 minutes played at 5-on-5 when it comes to expected goals percentage, with an xG mark of 79.6 percent. Expected goals is a measure of both shot quantity and quality, meaning that trio has both had the puck and been creating scoring opportunities with it. In all, they’ve put 47 shots on goal at 5-on-5 compared to just 14 for the opposition.
“Everything,” head coach Dean Evason said when asked what he liked about the line after Thursday’s win vs. Buffalo. “They’re not only creating offensively, but tonight, we played them against (Tage) Thompson’s line for the most part, which is a tough challenge. They're doing the right things defensively as well.”
While it appears the Blue Jackets might switch things up for Tuesday’s game in an effort to spread out some offense given all the injuries in the forward group – Cole Sillinger joined Monahan and Marchenko on a line at Monday’s practice, while Chinakhov skated with Adam Fantilli and Mikael Pyyhtia – Evason said it’s good to know he can always go back to the grouping when the need arises.
And the good news is no matter where he puts Monahan, Evason knows he’s going to get a solid effort. Now in his 12th season in the NHL, Monahan is a well-rounded hockey player, from consistent scoring – he has eight 20-goal campaigns – to excellent faceoff skills (54.9 percent so far this year) to solid positioning and defensive play.
“Probably him,” Evason said when asked the key to the line. “As you guys have seen, he’s healthy. His skating is fantastic. He’s team first. He’s just first over the boards, for penalty kill, for power play – everything basically. When you’re talking about people that are going to step up in a leadership role, you don’t have to look too much further than that. He’s a leader in all areas, not only on that line but on our hockey club.”
When asked, both Chinakhov and Marchenko went out of their way to credit Monahan for making it easy on them to produce.
“Every time, he’s in good position,” Marchenko said. “He makes a pass every time. He wins the battles. There’s a lot of talk on the ice. He has a lot of experience in the NHL, and he really helps us.”
Added Chinakhov: “He’s a very smart guy, and he has played a lot in the NHL already. He just helps us and teaches us some lessons.”
Marchenko and Chinakhov can teach Monahan some things as well – in particular, a little bit of their native tongue.
“I think he will (learn some Russian), but not now,” Marchenko said. “We’ll give him a little time.”
