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Toronto Maple Leafs Preseason Game vs. Ottawa Senators

Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Ottawa Senators – Preseason Game #2 Preview, Projected Lines & TV Info

Sep 19, 2018

Puck drop: 7:30 p.m. EST | TV: TSN4 | Radio: TSN1050 | Location: Ottawa, ON

A testament to the team’s enviable star power up front: After John Tavares and Mitch Marner tore it up for the other half of the split-squad last night, the Maple Leafs will dress another first line centered by a superstar in the second leg of a preseason back-to-back tonight in Ottawa.

Auston Matthews will play in his first competitive action of the exhibition season with Patrick Marleau on his left wing and Tyler Ennis — the current placeholder for William Nylander — on the right. That’s a whole new look for Matthews, who shared the ice with Zach Hyman and Nylander for 650 minutes of his 928 even strength minutes last season.

Marleau and Matthews shared the ice at 5v5 for just 44 minutes total last season, while Ennis is a total newcomer looking to make a positive first impression in a good opportunity on his offwing. Where Tavares and Marner more or less hit the ground running on Tuesday — and Zach Hyman is dependable in what he brings, no matter the line — it’s easier to picture more of an adjustment period with this trio in the early going tonight.

Storylines to Watch

What will be interesting to watch, in addition to the Marleau-Matthews combination, is Matthews’ skating coming off of a summer in which he put in a significant run of work — four days straight — with skating coach Barb Underhill for the first time as a pro. Already a powerful skater, Matthews has powered through some less-than-perfect mechanics — he bends at the hips and doesn’t bend equally at the knees — and some refinement in that area would make him that much more dangerous as far as his ability to gain separation in his first three strides.

The other complete NHL line dressing tonight is the team’s projected opening-night fourth unit centered by Par Lindholm, who will be flanked by Kasperi Kapanen and Andreas Johnsson. Frederik Gauthier, dressing tonight in between Pierre Engvall and Josh Jooris, will be looking to push Lindholm for that fourth-line center spot; Gauthier is also auditioning for all 31 teams at this point, as he is now waiver eligible.

Lindholm has the clear edge coming in here, but he will need to cement his spot in preseason. How well he keeps up while adjusting to the NHL ice surface with two quick wingers on his line — blazing fast, in Kapanen’s case — is a storyline to watch tonight. The three members of the projected fourth line could also feasibly be three of the team’s regular penalty killers up front, which is something to keep an eye on as well.

On the backend, with Jake Gardiner not dressing tonight after the birth of his baby boy yesterday, Leafs fans will be getting a glimpse into their blue line’s future in the shape of a Rasmus Sandin – Timothy Liljegren pairing.

Sandin likely wouldn’t have been in the lineup if not for Gardiner’s absence, but this presents a good measuring-stick opportunity for the 2018 first rounder that hopefully serves as an early confidence builder as he looks to prove he’s pro ready enough to stick with the Marlies.

Liljegren, meanwhile, has turned up to camp with a year of professional experience under his belt and is looking a fair bit bulkier compared to a year ago. The 2017 first round pick will want to use this opportunity to start working his way into the back of the NHL brass’ minds when it comes to making the jump to the next level sometime in the next year or so.

Another Swede (one of six in the Leafs lineup tonight), Calle Rosen, is coming off a strong Calder Cup campaign for the Marlies and is looking to put himself in the mix for a bottom pairing role on the big club. Travis Dermott would seemingly have to play his way out of the left-defense spot at this point with a particularly poor preseason, but Dermott was the recipient of a message from Babcock the other day about his need to win a job and he wasn’t at the top of his game in the first exhibition primer (taking that for what it’s worth — which isn’t much). The door may be open just a crack if Rosen — or Andreas Borgman, or Martin Marincin — are able to kick it down.

Toronto Maple Leafs Projected Lines

Forwards

Patrick Marleau (#12) – Auston Matthews (#34) – Tyler Ennis (#63)
Andreas Johnsson (#18) – Par Lindholm (#26) – Kasperi Kapanen (#24)
Pierre Engvall (#47) – Frederik Gauthier (#33) – Josh Jooris (#36)
Rich Clune (#39) – Adam Brooks (#77) – Jeremy Bracco (#59)

Defensemen

Martin Marincin (#52) – Nikita Zaitsev (#22)
Calle Rosen (#48) – Connor Carrick (#8)
Rasmus Sandin (#78) – Timothy Liljegren (#37)

Goaltenders

Frederik Andersen (#31)
Calvin Pickard (#30)

Ottawa Senators Projected Lines

Forwards

Brady Tkachuk – Chris Tierney – Mark Stone
Magnus Paajarvi – Zack Smith – Tom Pyatt
Rudolfs Balcers – Ben Sexton – Filip Chlapik
Joe Labate – Paul Carey – Jack Skille

Defensemen

Maxime Lajoie – Cody Ceci
Ben Harpur – Christian Jaros
Julius Bergman – Andreas Englund

Goaltenders

Mike McKenna
Craig Anderson

Game Day Quotes

Mike Babcock on the difference at this year’s camp versus past years:

I’m noticing the skill level is getting better every year, and the professionalism. We’re stronger, faster and better because our summers are better and we’ve learned to be better and have grown up a little bit. In saying all of that, we’ve had good energy every year I’ve been here. I think we’ve always had good guys who like hockey. In saying that, we’re obviously in a better situation to have success.

Babcock on Andreas Borgman’s performance last night and the battle for the final spots on defense:

He’s done a good job. There’s a group there. I thought Holl had a good game last night. I thought Borgy had a good game. I thought Ozhiganov had a good game. And then you’ve got Rosen and Carrick in that mix as well. I don’t want to hurt anybody’s feelings by leaving anyone out, but there is a whole crew of them there. They’ve got to figure out how to get into the top six and how to take someone’s job. It’s competitive every year. Every player on the team wants a little bit more. That is what this time of year is all about — figuring that out.

We played Ozhiganov and Dermott last night against their best players as much as we could. We didn’t put Rielly and Hainsey in that spot because that’s what we are going to try to do — find out who is good enough. You basically have eight exhibition games to figure that out and you want to make the decision. Obviously, with waivers and all of that stuff, we can do some other things if we’re not sure. but we try to make the best decision by the time that is done.

Babcock on Leivo’s performance in camp and his chances of making the team:

The opportunity is better for him and Ennis because Willy is not there. The other thing I’d say to you is that, because he worked way harder, he is having more success. It’s amazing — when you put the work first, you tend to get luckier. He is doing that. Now, each and every day, I’ll make sure he is going to work. You’ve got to go to work every day. The good players do. They flat out come and work every single day. If you want to be a good player, you’ve got to do the same.

Babcock on the thinking behind the Matthews and Marleau combination:

I think Matty is skating at a whole other level. Patty came back and he was right there for the fitness test award again at 39. Obviously, we expected Willy here and that would’ve made a difference, but we are going to watch them play tonight and I’ll tell you more tomorrow. How’s that?

Babcock on the difficulty of missing a week of camp if you’re Nylander:

It’s just harder. I don’t care what workout you’re doing; these guys are getting better every day. You are at a rink some place on your own or maybe with one or two other people; you’re not doing this. That makes it harder for you. But hockey is a business. He has got representatives and Kyle and them will work things out, and he’ll eventually find his way back here.

Matthews on John Tavares’ two-goal preseason debut:

It was great to see. I’m sure it is a bit of a sigh of relief with all the commotion going on around him right now. He looked good out there. Obviously, it’s the first preseason game so you’re trying to fine tune everything and get better. But he’s only going to get better, so it’s pretty fun to watch.

Toronto Maple Leafs Roster vs. Senators - 2018 Preseason Game #2

Player	Position	Jersey #	Camp Status	Waiver Status
FORWARDS
Auston Matthews	C	34	NHL Lock
Patrick Marleau	LW	12	NHL Lock
Tyler Ennis	RW	63	Bubble	Eligible
Par Lindholm	C	26	Bubble	Exempt
Kasperi Kapanen	RW	24	NHL Lock
Andreas Johnsson	LW	18	NHL Lock
Frederik Gauthier	C	33	Bubble	Eligible
Josh Jooris	C/W	36	Bubble	Eligible
Colin Greening	C/W	38	AHL Veteran	AHL Contract
Pierre Engvall	LW	47	Bubble	Exempt
Rich Clune	LW	39	AHL Veteran	Eligible
Adam Brooks	C	77	AHL Prospect	Exempt
Jeremy Bracco	RW	59	AHL Prospect	Exempt

DEFENSEMEN
Jake Gardiner	LD	51	NHL Lock
Nikita Zaitsev	RD	22	NHL Lock
Connor Carrick	RD	8	Bubble	Eligible
Timothy Liljegren	RD	37	AHL Prospect	Exempt
Martin Marincin	LD	52	Bubble	Eligible
Calle Rosen	LD	48	Bubble	Exempt
Rasmus Sandin	LD	78	AHL/OHL Prospect	Exempt
Vincent LoVerde	RD	45	AHL Veteran	Eligible

GOALTENDERS
Frederik Andersen	G	31	NHL Lock
Calvin Pickard	G	30	Bubble	Eligible