After the Maple Leafs’ 3-2 loss to Montreal, head coach Jim Hiller discussed Kirill Marchenko’s Leafs debut alongside Auston Matthews, Gavin McKenna’s NHL debut, and the challenge of building cohesion with so many new faces in the lineup.
What did you see as the difference in the game tonight?
Hiller: Well, we turned the puck over in the D-zone. I think you guys watched the game, so I don’t have to explain that to you. That was really our Achilles’ heel. Outside of that, I thought we played pretty well.
How did you approach Kirill Marchenko ahead of his first game tonight?
Hiller: We talked to him a little bit and gave him a little bit of an understanding of our systems and structure. It’s been quite a day, so we tried not to overload him.
I think you saw there some of the things he can do, he and Auston. Rosie played really well with them, too, so that line was dangerous.
My favourite opportunity was Auston’s one-timer, and Roslovic’s right on top of the goalie. There’s a deflection, and Dobes makes a save. That’s what they’re going to have to do—not just off the rush. They’re going to have to do some of that in the offensive zone.
What can Gavin McKenna take away from tonight?
Hiller: If I think about the first exhibition game, he talked to you guys and said, “Yeah, it was just an okay night. I’ll learn from it.” Then he came back and had a really strong game.
I think tonight, it’s up another level again. You just keep taking the test, and he’ll be back. I thought he was all right, but he’ll probably want to be better.
What did you make of Darren Raddysh’s game?
Hiller: He was all right, too. We had a lot of new guys, and I thought we looked a little bit like a new team today. We just weren’t connecting with our passes.
I don’t know if that has anything to do with nerves, or being in the building for the first time, and the first time everybody’s together. We weren’t clean as a team.
What did you make of Sergei Bobrovsky’s game?
Hiller: I thought he was good. A couple went past him where there’s a deflection — those types of goals.
You throw it there enough times, sometimes it goes in. Sometimes, you can throw it there, and it just doesn’t go in. Tonight, they had a couple that found the back of the net from just throwing it at the net.
What’s the challenge with all these new faces and finding that cohesion organically? What can you do as a coaching staff to try to accelerate that?
Hiller: We’ve worked at doing that off the ice. That’s been a priority because that’s one of the things we can control.
On the ice, I just think it’s going to take some time until everybody settles into their roles. Everybody wants to do extremely well, and sometimes that’s more of a curse than a blessing. You try to do too much, and you get a little tight.
First time playing for the Maple Leafs in this building in a regular-season game, so that might have a little bit to do with some nerves. I don’t know that for sure.
Hopefully, they can bounce back and just be a little cleaner tomorrow night.
What was tonight like for you?
Hiller: Always better when you win. Let me just tell you that, right?
I liked how we played. Again, I don’t think we gave them a lot off the rush. I thought we had some structure in there. The bench was good. The guys were excited in between periods.
For me, it’s just the start of a long journey. We’d like to win, of course, but we’ll have to get that win tomorrow.
