Three of the NHL’s rising stars, oddly dubbed the ‘Triplets,’ have been at the center of Tampa Bay’s rise through the playoffs and a driving force for the team entering game four of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, according to Yahoo Sports.
In recent weeks there has been much speculation about who actually gave the trio the ‘Triplets’ nickname, but it appears that Tampa Coach Jon Cooper deserves all the credit. Following a practice Cooper himself unintentionally dubbed the line the triplets while speaking to the media.
The line itself comprises Tyler Johnson, Ondrej Palat and Nikita Kucherov, all young players finding themselves quickly rising the NHL ranks. Johnson and Palat are both 24-years-old, and Kucherov is only 21.
The ‘Triplets’ originally came together in a developmental league when Johnson and Palat played together as members of Tampa Bay’s AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch. When Syracuse coach Jon Cooper transitioned to the NHL many of his AHL favorites were also brought up. After having a few seasons in the NHL, Cooper decided that Kucherov would be brought up too, completing the ‘Triplets’ trio.
A Stanley Cup win by Tampa could rival another famous line of youngsters, Toronto’s Stanley Cup winning “Kid Line” from the early 1930’s. With a 2-1 series lead over the Chicago Blackhawks, the ‘Triplets’ could repeat history almost century later.