The Maple Leafs are hoping to keep their strong form rolling and win one for Scott Laughton in his first game in Philadelphia as a member of the Leafs (7:00 p.m. EST, TSN4).
Game Day Quotes
Craig Berube on the challenge presented by the Flyers:
It’s a very good defensive team we’re up against. They don’t give you a whole lot. We are going to have to work to get on the inside. They do a good job of capitalizing on their chances, too. They’re fast. We have to manage the puck; if you turn it over, coming out of their end, they’re quick, and they get out of their end quickly. Travis Sanehim and Cam York are involved in the offense on their D side of things.
Scott Laughton on whether he will try to get under his former team’s skin:
I’ll see how the game develops. It was pretty quiet against them last year when we played them at home. I’ll stay away from certain guys out there, like [Seeler]. But no, I’ll try to take it all in.
Laughton on the friends and family who will be in attendance tonight:
I have some people coming from some of the charities I worked with. I have some family in town. There are relationships I built throughout the years here, and those people are coming down. It will be nice to see the crowd again and be a part of it.
We have a tight race here, and it is a very important game for both teams. We need to play well. I have been watching these guys a little bit; they’re playing really good hockey, so we are going to have to be good from the start of the game.
Laughton on the keys to the Leafs‘ success of late:
We are playing with the puck more, and we’re defending better. We are not defending for as long. We were chasing games before, and allowing odd-man rushes. Our goaltending has been great, and our special teams have been good. That adds up, and we start seeing success. A little bit of confidence gains, and you can build from it.
Max Domi on Scott Laughton’s impact on the locker room:
He is the best. Our personal connection is pretty special. We got back to two years old together. I’ve known him my whole life and have always looked up to him. What he means to our locker room is second-to-none. Unbelievable teammate, unbelievable hockey player, and a true competitor. You see what he does every night, night in and night out. He is awesome.
He is a special person. You see him this his family — his wife, his son, and his parents — and I’ve seen it from day one. How he is with them is unbelievable. He really brings that into our locker room and treats every guy in here like a brother.
We are very lucky to have him. All jokes aside, he is a great guy. But we are going to give it to him pretty good tonight if he gets emotional. I am sure he will. He spent a long time here — 10 years — so there will be a lot of memories going through his mind right now.
Max Domi on the difference in the team’s play of late:
The desperation button — you hit it when you are in playoff mode. Unfortunately, we had to hit it a little earlier this year, but it is also a positive. We are learning to play in intense, important games at a good time of year. There is still a lot of time to prep for the playoffs, so we are looking forward to the challenge.
Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet on the message to his team ahead of the matchup against the Leafs, following an “emotional” win over Anaheim:
We talked about coming back for the first game after a road trip, and we got through that. This is another test. We played an emotional game, and what do they usually say? The team usually has a tough time getting up for it. That is all mental.
I always try to put my player hat on. After a great, emotional win, usually, the next day, I am a bit more business-like, a little grumpier. You want to be ready tonight. You don’t want to be loose. Hopefully, we have that business-like attitude because we are playing a hot team.
This is a Leafs team that has won a bunch of games. They beat us last time in here. I don’t think we had the greatest game.
There is a lot of motivation. We should be aware of the signals and be ready to play.
Maple Leafs (20-15-7) vs. Flyers (22-12-7): Head-to-Head Stats
via NaturalStatTrick.com & AdvancedHockeyStats.com
Toronto Maple Leafs Projected Lines
Forwards
#74 Bobby McMann – #34 Auston Matthews – #11 Max Domi
#63 Matias Maccelli – #91 John Tavares – #23 Matthew Knies
#53 Easton Cowan – #55 Nicolas Roy – #89 Nick Robertson
#18 Steven Lorentz – #24 Scott Laughton – #19 Calle Jarnkrok
Defensemen
#44 Morgan Rielly – #25 Brandon Carlo
#95 Oliver Ekman-Larsson – #28 Troy Stecher
#2 Simon Benoit – #51 Philippe Myers
Goaltenders
Starter: #35 Dennis Hildeby
#60 Joseph Woll
Extras: Matt Benning, Jacob Quillan
Injured/Out: Jake McCabe (one week), William Nylander (day-to-day), Chris Tanev (IR), Dakota Joshua (IR), Dakota Mermis (IR), Anthony Stolarz (LTIR)
Philadelphia Flyers Projected Lines
Forwards
#46 Trevor Zegras – #22 Christian Dvorak – #11 Travis Konecny
#52 Denver Barkey – #14 Sean Couturier – #74 Owen Tippett
#39 Matvei Michkov – #27 Noah Cates – #91 Carl Grundstrom
#29 Nikita Grebenkin – #18 Rodrigo Abols – #19 Garnet Hathaway
Defensemen
#8 Cam York – #6 Travis Sanheim
#24 Nick Seeler – #55 Rasmus Ristolainen
#36 Emil Andrae – #47 Noah Juulsen
Goaltenders
Starter: #80 Dan Vladar
#33 Samuel Ersson
Injured/Out: Jamie Drysdale, Tyson Foerster, Bobby Brink
