Sure, their line may be listed at the bottom of the linechart. But through the last six games, the “maroon line” has looked nothing like your typical fourth line.

Since MSU head coach Rick Comley first put the three players together Dec. 29 at the Great Lakes Invitational, the line has been on fire, posting a combined nine goals and 10 assists since.

This comes with Perlini having played in two games prior to the tournament and Nill dressing for 10 games. In fact, neither player recorded points prior to the GLI.

With the line posting six points against Notre Dame last weekend, Comley said the “maroon line” has established itself as “one of the team’s top lines.”

“I’m not sure they are the fourth line anymore,” Comley said. “They’ve all elevated their game. Perlini has really come into his own. Chelios is growing and Nill has taken a step. You try all year to get opportunities for players hoping they will benefit from it. It looks like these three guys have.”

The Great Lakes Invitational might have been the perfect time to put the three players together, as they all have a tie to the city of Detroit, where the tournament was held.

For Chelios, his father, Chris, played for the Red Wings for nine-plus seasons, while Nill’s father is the assistant general manager of the Red Wings.

Perlini’s got to give some love to the city of Detroit, too. He had dressed for only two games prior to the GLI, but caught fire in the tournament, posting three goals and two assists en route to being named the GLI MVP.

Because the line’s inception took place in Detroit, and all three have family ties — or a weekend series of a lifetime — in the Motor City, I’m lobbying for this line to be coined “The Detroit Connection.”

That has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?

Regardless of the line’s name, they feel they have earned the right to no longer man the fourth line.

“I think it’s one of the best fourth lines I’ve ever seen,” Perlini said. “But basically we just treat it like any other line. It doesn’t matter to us as long as we are getting regular shifts.”

The key to this line’s success and chemistry has been the way the three forwards compliment each other.

Perlini has the seeing-eye shot that always seems to find the back of the net. Chelios has the stick-handling skills that make it look like he has the puck on a magnet. And Nill is the workhorse who plays with the in-your-face mentality that’s vital for the every successful line in college hockey.

They aren’t the prettiest line for the Spartans. But their hard work and energy on the ice gives the MSU hockey team a jump-start.

After admitted struggles throughout last season, Perlini and Nill played limited roles early this year. But hard work and consistent point production has made this line a mainstay for the Spartans.

“We try and make it our goal every week to come in here and work hard to improve,” Nill said. “We can’t control what line we are, but we can control how we go out and just work hard every game. If we are the fourth line and get a lot of playing time and score a lot of goals, then that works. Just as long as we are out there.”

This work ethic, which has been noted by several teammates, is just another reason I think “The Detroit Connection” is fitting for the trio.

And with The Frozen Four held in Detroit in April, maybe this line will have a chance to return to the place where it all began.

Alex DiFilippo is the State News hockey reporter. He can be reached at difilip3@msu.edu.