Leafs balance blueline to counter hard-working Hurricanes
The Leafs are shuffling their top four on defence for Thursday’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes as Morgan Rielly and Oliver Ekman-Larsson trade places. Rielly will skate beside Chris Tanev while Ekman-Larsson links up with Philippe Myers.
"They're pretty spread out on three lines," head coach Craig Berube said of the Hurricanes. "I think we need some balance with our D pairs tonight going against them. They've got some good skill in each line with size."
Simon Benoit and Conor Timmins remain together on the third pair, so all of Toronto's defence combinations feature an offensive-minded player with a stay-at-home type.
Jake McCabe, who has formed a reliable shutdown pairing with Tanev this season, will miss a second straight game with an upper-body injury.
Carolina's leading scorers – Martin Necas (47 points), Sebastian Aho (43) and Andrei Svechnikov (29) – all skate on different lines.
"They've got some great players over there," Berube said. "But it's their pressure they come with; they're a hark-working team. They work as hard as any team in the league. There's just no room. They don't give you much room. You've got to win your battles. There's a few things that we got to do to try to create some space out there tonight. And be patient. I think composure and patience and discipline are going to be key tonight in this game."
Berube will also be making changes to his bottom-six group up front. Nick Robertson, who scored in all three games against the Hurricanes last season, will draw back in. He skated on the third line on Thursday morning beside Max Domi and Steven Lorentz.
Pontus Holmberg will get back in for the first time since Dec. 28. He skated on the fourth line beside David Kampf and Connor Dewar.
"Just a little more speed tonight," Berube explained. "It's going to be a fast game."
Toronto's two oldest players, Max Pacioretty (36 years old) and Ryan Reaves (37), will sit out as healthy scratches.
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The Leafs will stick with a five-forward look on the top power-play unit with Matthew Knies working alongside Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, John Tavares and William Nylander at the skate. That quintet was on the ice when Toronto scored a second-period power-play goal on Tuesday.
"We made a switch and it worked out," Berube said. "We made that switch a couple times and it's worked out. So, I mean, there's no sense changing it. We'll see how it looks tonight. We'll go from there."
The Leafs did not generate a shot on their first two chances during the first period of the game in Philadelphia. What changed?
"We talked," said Marner. "We weren't too thrilled with the first couple power plays there and talked about it, that we need to be a lot better and a lot cleaner, and we were ... We scored goals. It felt good."
Tavares scored the first man-advantage marker. Matthews then scored a second after a power play expired.
Just like last season, the Hurricanes are leading the league in penalty killing (84.9 per cent kill rate).
"Keep it simple," Knies said of Thursday's strategy. "Get it to the net, try and create havoc around there, and not do too much. Stick to the simple stuff and I think that will get us a reward."
Toronto has lost four straight games to Carolina going 0-for-12 on the power play in that stretch. The Hurricanes are 6-for-14 on the power play during the win streak.
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The Leafs have won a season-high five straight games despite not getting much production from their leading goal scorer. Nylander is goalless in eight straight games, with five assists in that stretch since Dec. 23.
Nylander has gone four games without a point. It's his longest drought since last January. Berube met with the slumping winger on Thursday.
"I think sometimes skilled players, scorers, lose their confidence a little bit," Berube said. "And that's what I see right now with Willy. A little bit of lack of confidence."
How does Nylander get it back?
"It's talking to him about just working his way out of the situation," Berube said. "You can't just relate to, 'Well, I need a break.' Work your way out, get your breaks, work for your breaks. That's the biggest thing for me is just getting him back to work a little bit more. And being more tenacious on pucks and puck battles and things like that."
Despite the dry spell, Nylander is still tied for fourth in the NHL with 23 goals this season.
"When he was scoring and he was scoring a lot, his puck battles were extremely high," Berube noted. "And he's playing with more pace. He's not playing with the same pace right now."
Nylander failed to register a shot on goal on Tuesday. It was only the fourth time that happened this season.
Berube liked the way Nylander responded to their chat.
"We always have good conversations," the coach said. "It's been really good that way. I had to do a little bit better job with him too."
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Knies has gone from ice cold to red hot. After going eight games with just one assist, and nine games without a goal, the sophomore winger has exploded for five goals and two assists in the past three games.
"I try to keep some of the superstitions the same, but try not to overthink it too much," the 22-year-old said. "It's the same snack before the game, something like that, you know, same way you get dressed, something like that, that kind of puts you in the same mindset."
His go-to snack right now?
"Just peanut butter toast with a banana," he said with a laugh. "That's about it."
The return of Matthews has coincided with the surge by Knies, but Berube feels it's more about the sophomore winger.
"The biggest difference in the line is Knies," Berube said. "The way he's playing, with his forechecking and skating and size and strong on the pucks, going to the net, that's really opened a lot of it."
It wasn't long ago that Berube was calling on Knies to be more "reckless" in a bid to get him going again. So, what changed?
"It's just becoming a lot more simple," Knies explained to reporters following Tuesday's game. "I think I'm winning a lot more puck battles and finding myself open a lot around the net and that's the kind of player I have to be."
The hot streak began with a hat trick and five-point performance against the Boston Bruins on Saturday. Knies followed that up with goals in both halves of a home-and-home set against the Flyers.
Knies is up to 16 goals in 40 games, which is already more than the 15 he produced in 80 games as a rookie. Fourteen of Knies' goals this season have come in 5-on-5 play, which is tied for second overall. Only Montreal Canadiens sniper Cole Caufield has scored more at 5-on-5 this season.
Knies is proving to be a smooth operator in front of the net, which is where he was when he deflected home a Morgan Rielly shot for the game-winning goal on Tuesday.
"I kind of almost locked eyes with Mo and I saw that he was kind of looking for a stick to tip it to," Knies said. "Just tried to free up my hands and fortunate that tip went in."
"He was just in a good spot," Rielly said. "He's a big, strong guy and he goes hard to the net. He plays a great style for our team. He seems to fit right in with those guys. He can keep up, he can make plays, and he can finish. He's doing an outstanding job."
Five of Knies' goals this season have been classified as tips. He's ranked second overall in that category.
"He works on it and that's a big part of it," said Matthews. "He's such a big body so he's hard to move in front of the net. He's big. He's strong. He's long. And when pucks come his way he seems to get a touch on it."
Knies only had three tipped-in goals last season, but more and more the 6-foot-3, 227-pounder is learning how to best exploit his frame.
"He's a house, so he's a tough guy to move," said Tavares. "So physically mature for his age and just got real soft hands. It's a nice combination for us."
Knies has also studied video of how the recently-retired Joe Pavelski and former teammate Ryan O'Reilly get their sticks free for tips.
Berube described Toronto's emerging power forward as being "very fearless" in getting to the front of the net.
"He challenges defencemen with his speed and skill," the coach added. "He is heavy. He gets in there, and he is hard to handle.
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Matthews is looking like his old self after missing six games to rest a nagging upper-body ailment.
"I think every night I felt better," Matthews told reporters after Tuesday's game. "I just want to keep that momentum going."
Tavares pointed out that Matthews won a key faceoff leading to the Knies goal in Philadelphia.
"As complete a player as you are going to find," Tavares gushed. "It's been great having him back. He's kind of jumped in real nicely. Starting on Saturday, just seems really in rhythm."
Matthews has two goals and five assists in the three games since drawing back in. He has matched his season long point streak. It is his most productive three-game run this season.
"The chemistry seems to be gelling really well and it always helps when the puck is in the back of the net," Matthews said. "So, it kind of gives you a little bit of confidence. But I just want to take it one game at a time and just continue to build off our game, and what we're doing right now and just keep being responsible on both ends of the ice."
Berube highlighted that Matthews' return has "drove the pace of play" for his team. Tavares, meanwhile, noted that Matthews "sets the tone" for the group with his compete level.
But Matthews and Toronto's top line will face a tough task on Thursday night in an expected matchup against Jordan Staal, who came in second in Selke Trophy voting last season.
"Very reliable, strong guy," Marner said. "Plays his position very well and doesn't cheat for the offensive side of the puck. So you know you gotta go 200 feet every time. You got to work for your offence and you got to make sure when you get your shots you don't miss on them."
Matthews had one assist in three games against Carolina last season. Marner was held off the scoresheet in his one game against the Hurricanes.
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The Leafs are looking to sweep all three games with their mentors in attendance. Matthews invited former teammate and future Hall of Famer Joe Thornton to be his guest on this trip.
"He's not just my mentor," Matthews told reporters on Tuesday. "I feel like he's almost everybody's mentor here. But we're close. We talk all the time and I thought it was just a cool opportunity to bring him along. With his jersey retirement this year [in San Jose] and just the relationship that he still has with myself, a lot of guys on the team, staff members, you know, it's been a treat to have him so far."
Thornton is a man in demand this week.
"Seems like Mr. Popular," observed Lorentz. "Everyone wants to get a conversation with him. He's so great like that. He's happy to talk to everyone. He remembers your name even if it's been a little while since you've seen him. Just little things like that just make him a great person."
"Not much as has changed," said Rielly. "He's still the same person he was when we were lucky enough to play with him.
Thornton doesn't want to steal the spotlight and has declined interview requests this week.
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Joseph Woll has another former teammate on the trip as he invited his Boston College pal Michael Campoli.
"I got my college roommate," Woll said. "It's been pretty cool for him. I think some of the mentors have become good friends. My buddies on the team, their mentors are all now good friends, so I think they're having a good time."
Woll stopped 30 of 32 shots on Tuesday to secure his fifth straight win.
"I've just enjoyed playing, honestly," the goalie told reporters in Philadelphia. "It's fun to play a lot of games. It's easy to get in more of a rhythm when you're playing more, so I'm just enjoying it."
With Anthony Stolarz sidelined and the Leafs schedule not featuring a back-to-back until after the 4 Nations Face-Off in late February, Woll is going to get a steady run of starts.
"It's a mix of staying in the moment and focusing on one game at a time," he said. "I think that's very important. At the same time, just in terms of body and rest and mind and all that, just looking ahead in that way and just taking care of myself as well as I can."
Woll will make his 20th start of the season on Thursday, which puts him three away from his career high set last season.
Woll lost his one career game against the Hurricanes, which came last March in Raleigh.
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Lines at Thursday's Leafs skate:
Knies - Matthews - Marner
McMann - Tavares - Nylander
Robertson - Domi - Lorentz
Dewar - Kampf - Holmberg
Extras: Reaves, Pacioretty
Rielly - Tanev
Ekman-Larsson - Myers
Benoit - Timmins
Extra: Rifai
Woll
Hildeby
Lines at Wednesday's Hurricanes practice:
Jarvis - Aho - Roslovic
Robinson - Kotkaniemi - Necas
Svechnikov - Staal - Martinook
Jaaska - Drury - Blake
Slavin - Burns
Orlov - Chatfield
Smith - Walker
Kochetkov
Tokarski
Andersen