With all of their forward lines rejigged and Easton Cowan set to make his NHL debut, the Maple Leafs are looking for a response effort in the second half of a home-and-home set against the Red Wings (2:00 p.m. EST, Amazon Prime).
Game Day Quotes
Craig Berube on the need for a response effort in today’s rematch vs. the Red Wings:
We need to push back, for sure, after Saturday’s game in Detroit. We have to be better in the second period. We have to check better overall. I didn’t think our checking was very good, and our execution in the second period wasn’t very good. We need a 60-minute game tonight.
Berube on what he’s looking for from the Maccelli-Tavares-Nylander line:
I’ve put Maccelli there for more puck touches. They are not getting enough puck touches in the offensive zone. They’re not getting there enough, and when they do get there, it is in and out.
It’s a little more control with the puck. This guy can make plays. He has done a good job, in my opinion, of hanging onto pucks in the offensive zone in the first few games.
I need those guys in the offensive zone doing their thing. That is where they are most effective. They are not getting there enough, and they are not sustaining enough offensive-zone time. They are in and out quickly, and the forecheck isn’t getting it stalled enough. When they do have puck touches in there, it is one-and-done.
They have to sustain more pressure with more of a hounding mentality. On the forecheck, they have to get pucks stalled more and get more puck touches that way.
Berube on the role of Easton Cowan on the Matthews-Knies line:
He is a guy who is good down low in the offensive zone. We’re looking to get that line some more possession down there and some more plays. He does that stuff. He is a great hounder, too. He gets on top of things, is strong on pucks, and hangs onto pucks. That is why I made the switch.
Berube on Cowan’s readiness for his NHL debut:
He’s obviously a hungry guy. He has wanted to play; that is obvious. He works hard, is prepared, and has done a really good job of all of that stuff. He has stayed positive; he wanted to play, but we just didn’t get him into the first two games. Now, he has an opportunity. He has been really good in practice, worked really hard, and has been focused.
When I watched him in camp and in the games, I thought he did a good job defensively. He is a smart player with a good IQ. You can see when watching him practice, seeing his reads, and where he is positioned in the defensive zone.
He is like anybody else, but he has a good hockey IQ. He reads plays well and anticipates well. That is one of the reasons why I put him there.
Berube on a rare afternoon start:
I think guys look forward to afternoon games. It is not a whole day of thinking about the game. They get here in the morning, and we’re going to play.
You have to be ready at the drop of the puck, like any game. Get a good warmup in, skate, get your legs going, and get your mind into it as quickly as possible. When the puck drops, it is on.
They’re a good team, Detroit. They have a lot of good skill over there. It will be a tough matchup.
Todd McLellan on his team cleaning up the odd-man opportunities vs. Toronto on Saturday:
We played fast. We played aggressively. More importantly, we played calculated and smart. The calculated and smart part came into play; by my count, we gave up two, clear-cut, outnumbered rushes. They still scored on one — the four-on-four. On the other one, Albert (Johansson) shot it into some pads at the net front, and they went down on a 2-on-1; Talbot did his job.
That was far different than what we saw in game one. There was more responsibility, more awareness, and more winning of foot races we didn’t win against Montreal. The D read, anticipated, and calculated whether they should be going or not going. We just went against Montreal, recklessly.
All of those factors came into play.
McLellan on what James van Riemsdyk brings to the Red Wings’ lineup:
He has played a lot of years on a lot of good teams, so he has that stability of that experience factor.
He is a big man with good hands. On the power play, in and around the net, he has been one of the better ones in the National League over the number of years that he’s played. He is really good down low in those areas.
He is crafty. He has a little wisdom to his game. He uses what he’s got, works his way around the rink, and gets the best out of it.
Toronto Maple Leafs Projected Lines
Forwards
#23 Matthew Knies – #34 Auston Matthews – #53 Easton Cowan
#63 Matias Maccelli – #91 John Tavares – #88 William Nylander
#89 Nick Robertson – #11 Max Domi – #74 Bobby McMann
#81 Dakota Joshua – #55 Nicolas Roy – #19 Calle Jarnkrok
Defensemen
#22 Jake McCabe – #8 Chris Tanev
#44 Morgan Rielly – #25 Brandon Carlo
#2 Simon Benoit – #95 Oliver Ekman-Larsson
Goaltenders
Starter: #41 Anthony Stolarz
#30 Cayden Primeau
Extras: Philippe Myers, Sammy Blais
Injured: Scott Laughton (week-to-week, LBI), Steven Lorentz (day-to-day, UBI)
Out: Joseph Woll (personal)
Detroit Red Wings Projected Lines
Forwards
#58 Emmitt Finnie – #71 Dylan Larkin – #23 Lucas Raymond
#93 Alex Debrincat – #92 Marco Kasper – #88 Patrick Kane
#18 Andrew Copp – #37 JT Compher – #28 Michael Brandsegg-Nygard
#21 James van Riemsdyk – #27 Michael Rasmussen – #22 Mason Appleton
Defensemen
#8 Ben Chiarot – #53 Moritz Seider
#77 Simon Edvinsson – #44 Axel Sandin-Pellikka
#20 Albert Johansson – #25 Jacob Bernard-Docker
Goaltenders
Starter: #39 Cam Talbot
#36 John Gibson
