Toronto Maple Leafs @ Montreal Canadiens
7:00 p.m. at the Bell Center
Watch on: RDS, TSN2, TSN4
Opponent site: Eyes on the Prize
Montreal again, this time at home. The Leafs send a team full of regulars, and the Canadiens counter with something similar.
Their
This game is your reminder that Sean Monahan is now part of the Canadiens.
Lines
It looks like this for the Habs against the Leafs tonight:
Dadonov-Dvorak-Gallagher
Drouin-Monahan-Anderson
Hoffman-Dach-Slafkovsky
Simoneau-Gignac-Belzile
Matheson-Leskinen
Xhekaj-Barron
Schueneman-Bowey
Allen
Foal— Eric Engels (@EricEngels) October 3, 2022
We
The Leafs split their team into an NHL group and a prospect group yesterday. Today they cut several players at the Marlies camp about to open. The roster they sent today is a mix of both, but it leans heavily on the NHL side:
Lines
Barring last minute changes, this should be the team playing:
Leafs lines for morning group skating Oct. 3/22
Bunting-Matthews-Marner
Robertson-Kerfoot-Nylander
AstonReese-Holmberg-AubeKubel
Steeves-Gaudette-Malgin
Supplement: AbruzzeseRielly Brodie
Giordano-Holl
Kral-Weather
Pietroniro VilleneuveMurray (leaving)
Samsonov—David Alter (@dalter) October 3, 2022
Absent Pierre Engvall and Jake Muzzin, still a little battered, as well as Calle Järnkrok, sick for a day. David Kämpf also stays with the other band. Matt Murray is set to play the full game, according to reports, making this the most serious goalie usage we’ve seen in some time.
The game
What’s at stake here is the priority list for the cuts that matter in a few days. Adam Gaudette, fresh from injury, has dropped back in the lineup and has to compete with his teammates for attention. Pontus Holmberg, between the power of Zach Aston-Resse and Nicolas Aubé-Kubel, can play to his own strengths – possession of the puck and control of the offensive zone. They’re not the same as a Kämpf centered stop line, but the goal is to see them all against NHL players.
From 32 Thoughts today, it looks like the Leafs aren’t going to just add a deep defenseman without it being part of a trade for an excess forward. In the meantime, they like Filip Král and Victor Mete. Král has been frun to watch, but it’s a level of competition he hasn’t really seen before.
It’s also an opportunity for Nick Robertson to show himself again on the second row and really make an impression. Sheldon Keefe was positive about Robertson’s play, and I thought his last preseason game against the Ottawa Senators (mostly) was his best full game ever for the Leafs. This one is going to be harder.
Go Leaves go!
