![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/image-2-1024x633.png\")
<\/p>\nSorry for the blunt title, but at least you can\u2019t call it clickbait. Marco Kasper has had a season that defies a sophomore slump. About a month ago, I made a piece about Marco Kasper talking about how players of his archetype usually don\u2019t have a sophomore slump, at least not like his. I ended that piece by saying it was time to put Kasper on the top line to see how he fared.<\/p>\n
Now, it\u2019s not like it\u2019s truly been Detroit\u2019s top line; Lucas Raymond is playing with Compher right now. But still, playing with Dylan Larkin should give you some boost to your production right? Nope. He has 1 point in his last 11 games, and even that came on the power play.<\/p>\n
Hell, he\u2019s not even a center anymore, a position he was playing at last season. He\u2019s been outproduced by Nate Danielson in far fewer games; he has been largely removed from the penalty kill and doesn\u2019t even face difficult competition anymore, as he used to. I\u2019ll do my best to try and find some trends in his game, and what works, but believe me, it\u2019s gonna be a lot of hoping more than anything.<\/p>\n
What Deployments Does Kasper Work In?<\/p>\n
Not that this has been a complaint, but I\u2019ve noticed a lot of my pieces use a lot of deployment jargon that doesn\u2019t mean much to a lot of people. At the very least, it can be hard to follow visually. I\u2019ll put some graphs below to actually make my points readable.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m going to be using data from the past two seasons just because saying anything has \u201cworked\u201d for Marco Kasper this season would be a gross overstatement.<\/p>\n
Where Marco Kasper Has Worked: <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Kasper has played with 20 recorded combinations of the past two seasons. In that, with over 3.3% of his total time that season spent with that one line, these are the combinations that Kasper recorded both a Shots For % and Corsi For % over 50%. I consider that to be \u201ceffective\u201d as that means Detroit controlled the play when Kasper was with these line mates. <\/p>\n
The vertical axis has the percentage of offensive deployments on it, the higher you are, the more time you get deployed in the offensive zone. The horizontal axis is quality of competition, how good are your opponents, the further right you are, the better.<\/p>\n
The green dots are where Kasper\u2019s line was considered \u201ceffective\u201d and outscored their opponents. the red dots are where Kasper\u2019s line was still \u201ceffective\u201d but got outscored. The x\u2019s are where the line did not actually score a goal while on the ice together. <\/p>\n
So ultimately, three lines worked for Kasper in terms of carrying play and factoring in on offence over the past two seasons: Larkin and Raymond (2024-25), Kane and DeBrincat (2024-25), and DeBrincat and Appleton (2025-26).<\/p>\n
Main Takeaways:<\/p>\n
Kasper looks like he kind of suffers from Andrew Copp syndrome a little bit. Can be effective defensively deployed, but to get the most out of him, he needs to be surrounded by dominant offensive players. Bonus credit to myself here, I actually compared Kasper to Copp out of his draft and Danielson to Compher.<\/p>\n
So, let\u2019s get something out of the way quickly: Kasper isn\u2019t playing between DeBrincat and Kane this season. Andrew Copp has firmly cemented himself in that role and has been amongst the league\u2019s best second-line centres since finding his way back there.<\/p>\n
That doesn\u2019t mean we can\u2019t recreate that line in the aggregate. <\/p>\n
What Type of Player Does Kasper Perform Best With? <\/p>\n
![\"Alex](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Untitled-design-90-1024x512.png\")
Alex DeBrincat, Marco Kasper\u2019s best teammate | AP Photo\/Paul Sancya<\/p>\n
Well, it\u2019s clear that he needs at least one true offensive producer on his line. Specifically, he needs to play with a. scorer like Alex DeBrincat. The one consistent finisher on his line gives him somewhere that he clearly needs to move the puck to.<\/p>\n
Next, he needs someone who can facilitate play well, a distributor who can check the puck of the boards. While he has worked well with Kane, Kane is the only person who doesn\u2019t go to the boards to get the puck that has worked with him. The list of other players are people who are willing to play the puck down low off the cycle. <\/p>\n
So, what players fit into both groups?<\/p>\n
Finishing Options:<\/p>\n
Michael Brandsegg-Nyg\u00e5rd<\/p>\n
Emmitt Finnie<\/p>\n
James Van Riemsdyk<\/p>\n
Admittedly, the bottom six doesn\u2019t have a ton of pure scoring options. Emmitt Finnie hasn\u2019t been scoring much lately, but has shown he can. James Van Riemsdyk is a net front finisher, which isn\u2019t really the type of scorer I had in mind, and Brandsegg-Nyg\u00e5rd isn\u2019t even back at the NHL level yet.<\/p>\n
Grinder Options:<\/p>\n
James Van Riemsdyk<\/p>\n
Elmer Soderblom<\/p>\n
Mason Appleton<\/p>\n
Michael Rasmussen<\/p>\n
The list here is a little longer than the former. Now, a lot of these names don\u2019t really excite anyone, but they are pretty much built for this role. Appleton is the natural fit, having two of the effective lines with him, albeit one of them didn\u2019t score, and the other was with DeBrincat. I do actually really like James Van Riemsdyk in this spot because he is sort of a hybrid of both. He has found a way to produce consistently offensively in the bottom-six. Van Riemsdyk checks both boxes, so he\u2019s going to be on my Kasper line for sure.<\/p>\n
Of the offensive scorers, I think MBN is probably the best choice. To all of you who keep up with my work, yes, I found a way to keep pushing my call-up MBN propaganda, sue me. But honestly, I think bringing MBN back up gives you a really natural line that works well together. It also puts back together Rasmussen, Compher, and Appleton, who played well together as well.<\/p>\n
The good news about this line is that it still follows the Andrew Copp principle of \u201cdeployment doesn\u2019t matter\u201d. MBN and Kasper have the legs to work well defensively, and I don\u2019t think JVR has been a negative in his own zone at all. I could see them being a pretty perfect third line; they can check, score, and hold their own defensively. Face-offs might be an issuee but they are for just about everyone.<\/p>\n
Wrap Up:<\/p>\n
Where Kasper Works: Kasper can play well in both ends of the ice, he does not need to be limited to poor opponents in order to be effective. He can take on any level of competition to a decent level, even this season, being effective against second lines. I think the biggest takeaway is not to shelter Kasper with worse players and instead play him quality players who support his game.<\/p>\n
Who Kasper Should Play With:\u00a0Well, technically, he hasn\u2019t played with Raymond and Larkin yet, so I can\u2019t fully eat my words. But as of right now, I think the best fit is calling up MBN and putting him between Brandsegg-Nyg\u00e5rd and JVR.<\/p>\n
More to Read: <\/p>\n
\tDiscover more from Inside The Rink<\/p>\n
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