Sheldon Keefe, Toronto Maple Leafs practice
Sheldon Keefe, Toronto Maple Leafs practice
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After Wednesday’s practice, Sheldon Keefe discussed Mitch Marner’s injury situation, moving Calle Jarnkrok onto the top line with Auston Matthews, and the goals for the remaining 18 games of the regular season.

Practice Lines – Mar. 13

Is there any update on Mitch Marner?

Keefe: No update on Mitch other than that he didn’t skate today. Read into that what you will.

Has he skated before today?

Keefe: No, not since Thursday.

After a long run at center, what is the key to success on the wing for Max Domi?

Keefe: Just recognizing that his responsibilities are a little bit different defensively, but offensively, it is a little bit different, too. As we saw on his goal in Montreal, he can get ahead of the play a little bit more. From center, he is kind of using his speed from below the play or below the puck while kind of leading the charge that way.

In this case, he is maybe leading the charge a little more without the puck. There is a little bit of an adjustment there, but it also leads to more pucks on the wide entries, which is more of a strength of his in terms of his playmaking abilities.

There is an adjustment there for sure, but I think it is more on our half of the red line. Other than that, it is just playing hockey.

All things being equal with health, would you rather be solidifying the lines or would you rather be experimenting with the lines going into the playoffs?

Keefe: Of course, you’d like to solidify some things and keep things consistent, but at this time of the year, there are different things (happening). Mitch’s injury is to a significant player and it dramatically changes our team’s outlook. You have to adjust accordingly. That is really it.

In terms of our lines and combinations that work, we have been pretty consistent through the season for the most part. Obviously, there is an adjustment with John (Tavares) and how we used him throughout the last month or so, but throughout the season, we have been fairly consistent all the way through. Even with the addition of Dewar, there is not a lot of change to the forward group.

What went into the switch of William Nylander and Calle Jarnkrok on the top two lines?

Keefe: We liked them together the other night. That is part of it, but there is also getting John and Willy together on different lines.

Auston and Willy have played a lot of good minutes together throughout their time together this year and previous years, so I don’t want to overthink how it went in Montreal. It is a little more about getting John and Will together and having Will and Auston on two different lines as we go into this week’s matchups.

As you get into the final days of the regular season, what do you want to see in terms of the approach here?

Keefe: No different than any other time, you are seeking consistency as a group in your mindset. You are looking for cohesion. We don’t have a lot of change at forward, but on defense, we have some change. We need that to come together. We need the group itself to continue to grow together.

While there isn’t change with the actual personnel on forward here of late, we do have a little bit of change in the sense that we have the emergence of someone like Bobby McMann and how he is blossoming and bringing us different options as well as Holmberg and the way that he has come on. Also, Bertuzzi is coming along and Domi is coming along. John is coming on with his scoring offensively at five-on-five. All of these things give you additional options.

Consistency in our effort and our approach, special teams, and all of those kinds of things are what we want to get fine-tuned.

You have a chance to be the first head coach to win 20 road games in three straight seasons. How do you see the road mentality of your group growing in the last few years, and how important is it going into a place such as Philadelphia?

Keefe: I wasn’t aware of that, but I do feel that we have played better on the road than we have at home this season and in seasons past perhaps.

We have talked about it a little bit. It is hard to really pinpoint why that is. I do think the mindset is a little different away from home, generally speaking. I think we have had some good or gutsy efforts on the road. At times, at home, we have been less consistent with our play with the puck, some of our defensive play, and how we have managed games late. All of those kinds of things have been less of an issue on the road for whatever reason.

Certainly, you want to be a team that can be confident and comfortable in the other team’s building. Clearly, you also need to be able to bring that same type of approach on home ice. That is part of the consistency part we are looking for no matter who the opponent is, the building, the circumstances, or the schedule. You want to look and feel the same.

What are you looking for from Calle Jarnkrok on the top line and the top power-play unit in general? 

Keefe: For the group in general, it is about getting in sync and getting some pace. As the players come out of this little break that we have, we are hoping we are going to be a little refreshed, and that — in and of itself — kind of sparks us in terms of how coordinated and in sync we are.

In terms of Jarnkrok’s presence in that group, it is the right shot. Whether it is the breakout, the faceoff, or in the zone even, he plays the same role that Mitch plays on the second unit. He is very familiar in that sense. It gives us another right-handed option on the power play there, which is important.

We tried it with the additional lefty the last time. We didn’t like it as much. Jarnkrok is a guy who, if you give him a plan and tell him what you need from him, he is going to do what he can to make it happen. Really, it is about keeping things moving for the other guys who are normally in that group.

Who will start in the net tomorrow?

Keefe: Samsonov.

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