What will Utah Hockey Club do about its struggling third line?

André Tourigny is hesitant to change his forward combinations.

It makes sense. The Utah Hockey Club head coach’s first line has 17 points in five games, the second has 16 in five games and the fourth has four in five games.

The third line, though? It has one. And in the last 10 games? It has four.

Clayton Keller logged four points alone in under 30 minutes Sunday against the Anaheim Ducks. Logan Cooley, individually, has 12 points in 10 games. Plainly looking at the numbers, the trio of Matias Maccelli, Nick Bjugstad and Lawson Crouse is greatly underperforming.

Tourigny does not plan on officially breaking them up.

“The reason why is because our three other lines are above 56% of expected goals per game. Not breaking something that’s working to fix them,” Tourigny said.

There is also the belief that things may suddenly click for a line that has much experience together.

Last season in Arizona, Maccelli, Bjugstad and Crouse played 49 games together — more than any other combination on the team — and potted a team-high cumulative 22 goals. Crouse was second on the roster in scoring with 23 goals, Bjugstad was close behind with 22 and Maccelli had 17. Maccelli was also second on the team in assists with 40 — just three shy of Keller — and was slick at setting up his linemates.

“They’ve been good in the past,” Tourigny said. “They’ve been really good for us, they’ve been successful. There’s no reason for us to think that they will not be.”

But can Utah afford to sit around and wait for it to work? The team is one point out of the second wild card spot in the Western Conference for playoff positioning and has 49 more regular season games to prove if it can actually turn a corner this season.

That requires contributions from everyone.

Holding onto last year’s stats feels hard to do when the present is so glaring.

Crouse has seven points (four goals, three assists) through 33 games and has not scored since Nov. 29. Bjugstad has eight points (four goals, four assists) through 25 games, has not registered a point in eight games and has not scored since Nov. 23. Maccelli has 10 points (three goals, seven assists) through 33 games, has also not registered a point in eight games and has not scored since Nov. 7.

Not to mention, Crouse is on a five-year, $21.5 million contract with an average annual value of $4.3 million. He’s the third highest-paid forward on Utah behind Keller and Nick Schmaltz and has two more seasons on his deal after this one.

“At some point, the puck will go in, will hit the skate and go in and the floodgates will open,” Tourigny said.

The third line’s struggles have seeped into the power play, too. Crouse, Maccelli and Bjugstad are on the second unit with Michael Carcone and Michael Kesselring. While Utah has scored on the man advantage in seven consecutive games, all nine of the goals have come from the first unit. The second unit has not scored since Nov. 23.

“It’s a discussion we have. ... We need more from our second unit, no doubt about it,” Tourigny said. “We need them to chip in. … You need your second unit to go out there for the second unit to create a goal or get the momentum for the team.”

Something, evidently, needs to shift. Utah has internal answers, the question is if management is bold enough to use them.

Josh Doan and Kailer Yamamoto have spent the majority of the year in the AHL with the Tucson Roadrunners. Doan has 16 points (seven goals, nine assists) in 20 games and Yamamoto has 18 points (six goals, 12 assists) through 18 games. While different style players, both could bring a new energy, grit, drive and scoring touch to the third line if recalled.

They could also add pressure and competition from within that may spark a resurgence from the current third line with its back up against the wall.

So who would sit? The optics of making your veteran, associate captain a healthy scratch are probably ones Utah is trying to avoid with Crouse. Maccelli, who is 24 years old, seems to be struggling with confidence at this point in his development and a healthy scratch could worsen that.

But at this point, it might be necessary.

In Sunday’s loss to the Ducks, Cooley — who scored on the power play earlier in the night — took an undisciplined slashing penalty at 13:31 of the third period. The Ducks tied the game on the power play. The 20-year-old center was benched for the rest of regulation, overtime and the shootout.

“I will let you think about it,” Tourigny said when asked why he held Cooley out.

Cooley is third on the team in points with 30 (eight goals, 22 assists) and is on a five-game point streak — three of which were multi-point performances. He has been one of Utah’s most impactful players this season and Tourigny had no problem giving him a lesson through pivotal moments of a close game.

If Cooley — who is helping the team win on a nightly basis — has to be held accountable, why not the third line?

Tourigny made one adjustment to his forward group in the latter half of Sunday’s game. He moved Crouse to the fourth line with Kevin Stenlund and Alex Kerfoot and Carcone to the third line with Maccelli and Bjugstad.

“That’s your opinion,” said Tourigny when asked why Crouse was moved. “There’s no third line, there’s no fourth line. We have four lines, we move around. …Trying to get everyone going.”

Utah Hockey Club’s recent winning streak has masked the urgency of the issue. The third line’s leash continues to get longer and longer with little repercussion. It is up to Crouse, Maccelli and Bjugstad alone to change the narrative.