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After a 4-2 defeat to a stronger Red Wings lineup last night in Detroit, the shoe is on the other foot tonight as a nearly-complete Maple Leafs NHL lineup will take on a weaker Red Wings team in the final game of preseason (7 p.m., TSN4).

Among the bubble players, Nick Robertson and Pontus Holmberg will not play on back-to-back nights, but Adam Gaudette and Denis Malgin will feature. Make of it what you will.

One inference you could make is that Robertson and/or Holmberg have done enough to secure an opening-day roster spot, and Denis Malgin and Adam Gaudette are a day away from the waiver wire unless something spectacular changes tonight; they’ll both play with William Nylander in what could be a “last chance to show us something special” kind of opportunity.

Another possibility is that both Robertson and Holmberg are waiver-exempt (both on entry-level deals) and it could dictate that they start in the AHL, fairly or not based on the merits of their preseason performances.

There is a complex mix of waiver, cap, camp/preseason performance, and career body-of-work considerations at play here, and why speculate on the Leafs coaching staff and management team’s thinking here when it’s likely not fully formed yet and we’ll have all the answers we need later on this Thanksgiving weekend.

The other interesting aspect of tonight’s lineup is William Nylander lining up on center in between Gaudette and Malgin. There are a few layers to this. One is that the organization recognizes an intentional effort to provide Nylander with more reps at center could have some benefits down the line should injury situations arise throughout the season/playoffs, in addition to getting Nylander more reps in the faceoff circle, where Nylander’s right-shot could be of value with Jason Spezza (who took some power play and PK draws for the team over the past few years) now retired.

The other is that it could mean Tavares is a real possibility to play on Wednesday night in Montreal. With Nylander as a placeholder at center, the other three lines getting reps together tonight in Bunting – Matthews – Marner / Engvall – Kerfoot – Jarnkrok / Aston-Reese – Kampf – Aube-Kubel, as well as all three defense pairings in Rielly – Brodie / Muzzin – Holl / Giordano – Sandin, may well be the coaching staff’s current projection for opening night. That could mean that Nylander shifts back to the wing of Tavares if he is able to play, one of Malgin, Robertson, or Gaudette fills out the line, and the rest of the lines and pairs fall into place just as they are tonight.

There is also a possibility a trade of some kind necessitated by the roster/cap compliance deadline on Monday shakes up the mix. Stay tuned.

Today’s (unsurprising) cuts:

Game day banner context, ICYMI:


Game Day Quotes

Sheldon Keefe on the decision not to play Holmberg and Robertson on back-to-back nights:

Both guys have had excellent camps and have really shown well. We look at it in the final game here, and with as many guys as we want to play, those guys have played a lot of hockey in the prospects tournament and in this camp. We didn’t think it was necessary for them to play in the back-to-back situation tonight.

Keefe on the ZAR – Kampf – NAK and Engvall – Kerfoot – Jarnkrok lines:

We have liked the look of the [ZAR – Kampf – NAK] line. It has the opportunity to be a line that can be really responsible defensively. We all know how we used Kampf last season. With Aube-Kubel and Aston-Reese and their skill set, I think there is a great opportunity for them to be deployed in a similar manner.

The Kerfoot group with Jarnkrok and Engvall — I think that is a group that I can put on the ice against anybody on the other team and wouldn’t worry about it, but I do think there is offensive potential there. I think that is where our group may differ from what we have looked like in the past. We are excited to see how that plays out.

John’s health is a big factor here as well as everybody else remaining healthy through today. It certainly gives us a different look than we have had in the past. We want to see how that plays out and be sure that there is enough ice time for everybody and that everybody can stay in the game appropriately.

In terms of the depth, I feel as good as I have felt about our group that way — and that includes some of the guys who are not going to start the season with us. We have seen the level of competition we have had throughout camp, and in the game last night against Detroit, a lot of guys performed well against an NHL opponent. We have a lot of people we feel confident about their ability to play in NHL games for us.

Keefe on whether the final roster decisions are finalized yet:

I don’t think anything is ever cemented simply because you don’t have all of the information. We are going to be really tight to the cap as it is. If any injuries or anything happens tonight, it could change things dramatically in terms of the decision-making process and how many players you can keep on the roster, who may be on the roster, etc.

That is just the reality of it. You don’t have all of the information to make all the final decisions, but of course, there is a large sample that we have gone through over the last number of weeks, whether it is our preseason or guys that have started in the prospects tournament. There is a lot of stuff that has played out over time, and today, there is another game. We will be watching and evaluating while still getting our team prepared to play.

Keefe on John Tavares’ status as he works his way back from injury:

He just continues to stack good days together here. He is skating with both groups. We will have an off-day tomorrow. If all continues to go well, we will see him join our team for practice and perhaps in a non-contact situation. He will progress from there. It has all been positive to this point.

Keefe on the goals for tonight’s final preseason game in preparation for opening night:

It is obviously the largest group of our players playing collectively in the same game. You are wanting to get a feel for the flow of the bench. It is not going to be quite the same as the regular season, but you still want to get a flow for it in terms of the power play, the penalty kill, and how the bench flows in different situations — o-zone faceoffs and d-zone faceoffs. Getting the players all in the same game to kind of feel the flow of the game as it is in the regular season is probably the best thing for me as a coach.

You want to look organized. You want to look like you’re playing hockey that is going to help you succeed in the regular season. We are going to play four games in six nights right out of the gate starting on Wednesday. I know it is not the regular season and the players know it is not, they want to get the conditioning elements, the timing elements, and most importantly, get out of the game healthy. You are managing all of that.


Toronto Maple Leafs Projected Lineup 

Forwards
Bunting — Matthews — Marner
Gaudette — Nylander — Malgin
Engvall — Kerfoot — Jarnkrok
Aston-Reese — Kampf — Aube-Kubel

Defensemen
Rielly — Brodie
Muzzin — Holl
Giordano — Sandin

Goaltenders
Starting: Murray
Samsonov


Detroit Red Wings Projected Lineup