The Maple Leafs and Pittsburgh Penguins skated at Scotiabank Arena on Monday.
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After missing three of four games due to a lower-body injury, star winger William Nylander will be back in the Leafs lineup on Monday night.
“That sucks,” Penguins defenceman Erik Karlsson said with a laugh.
Karlsson and Nylander have been teammates with the Swedish national squad at multiple international events, including February’s 4 Nations Face-Off.
“He’s obviously a very good player,” Karlsson said. “To play in a market like this for a team like this with the expectations that they have, and being able to outperform them I think shows a lot to his character as a professional.”
Nylander last played on Tuesday when he picked up an assist during Toronto’s win over the Calgary Flames.
“The rest was I think pretty huge for it,” said Nylander. “So, it was good.”
Nylander missed the past two games, but practised on Friday and participated in Saturday’s morning skate.
“He feels a lot better,” said head coach Craig Berube. “He felt he could contribute in the Calgary game, which he did, and he played that game, but it kind of put him back a little bit. He’s had a little bit more time here to rest up.”
Despite missing three games, Nylander still leads the Leafs in scoring with 15 points.
“He’s been really chomping at the bit,” said centre John Tavares. “Trying to manage things and be smart, but he’s really looking forward to kind of getting back in there.”
The Leafs are hoping Nylander’s return will help them get on a roll. Even after winning on Saturday in Philadelphia, Toronto sits 14th in the Eastern Conference standings.
The Penguins, meanwhile, are tied for top spot in the Metropolitan Division with 18 points.
“They’re on fire,” Nylander noted. “They’re clicking on all cylinders. It’s going to be a good game tonight.”
The Penguins finished 24th overall last season.
“We’ve been going into every game probably with something to prove a little bit,” said captain Sidney Crosby, who leads the team with nine goals. “I feel like the expectations weren’t that high for us coming in. We’ve competed hard. We’ve given ourselves a chance pretty much every night that we’ve played [by] competing.”
Nylander ‘good to go’ for clash with Penguins: ‘He’s been really chomping at the bit’ William Nylander said he’s feeling better and declared himself “good to go” for Monday’s clash with the Penguins after missing three of the past four games with a lower-body injury. The Maple Leafs spoke about having their star forward back in the lineup, while fellow Swede Erik Karlsson joked that it sucks he’s returning tonight.
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Nylander will slot back in on the second line with Tavares and Easton Cowan, who scored his first NHL goal on Saturday.
“Cowboy really did a lot with the puck,” Berube said. “He skated well through the neutral zone with it and made plays in the offensive zone. It looked like him and JT really read off of each other well and created some good scoring opportunities. Cowan has the ability to make those little plays in tight — those five-foot plays.”
Cowan fired a career-high four shots on net in Philadelphia.
“John’s a super smart player and same with Willy,” the 20-year-old winger said. “I feel like we’ll be able to buzz around tonight and make some plays, and be hard on the forecheck, so just hoping to continue after last game.”
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Cowan is getting a promotion to the top power-play unit for Monday’s game joining Nylander, Tavares, Auston Matthews and Morgan Rielly.
“Just be a good option,” Cowan said of his mindset. “I just got to use my hockey sense. Just relax. I’ve been on the power play before. So just go out there and play and support everyone and try to score when we get a man advantage.”
The Leafs failed to convert on five power-play chances during their recent two game road trip. Toronto is clicking at just 12.5 per cent on the man advantage, which is 29th overall.
Berube has defended the power play for much of the season, but changed his tone on Monday morning in explaining what Cowan can bring to the first unit.
“We are not making enough plays on the power play,” Berube acknowledged. “I know I am talking out of both ends of my mouth, but we are shooting pucks — we are top five in the league in shots on the power play [per internal numbers] — and we are not getting results. A lot of the time, you have to be able to make these plays, and he really does see those plays — going to the bumper, to the goal line, and a little of the rotation stuff. Hopefully, it can trigger something and get some better looks in tighter.”
Matthew Knies, who leads the team with two power-play goals, is moving down to the second unit.
After scoring first NHL goal, Cowan promoted to Leafs top PP unit Easton Cowan scored his first career NHL goal against the Flyers on Saturday, and has been rewarded with a promotion to the Leafs’ top power play unit. Head coach Craig Berube says Toronto’s PP hasn’t been making enough plays and thinks Cowan has the vision and skills necessary to provide a spark on the man advantage.
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Bobby McMann skated as an extra forward on Monday morning and could be trending toward healthy scratch status. The big winger started the year strong with two goals and one assist in the first four games. He is now mired in an eight-game point drought despite getting some shifts on the top line.
“Early on, I saw the player I wanted to see,” Berube said. “I thought he was very aggressive. He was physical. He was winning his battles and getting scoring opportunities. It has dipped a little bit. It is about a mindset with him. He is playing a little too safely at times. He needs to play more aggressively and do what we need out of him.”
McMann only sat out one game, the season opener, as a healthy scratch last year. He finished the season with a career-high 20 goals.
Berube declined to say who will be bumped from the lineup with Nylander returning on Monday.
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Veteran centre David Kampf has stepped away from the Toronto Marlies to think about his future with the organization.
“He doesn’t feel like he wants to be down there, so that’s his decision on what he does,” Berube said. “That’s not for me to answer. That is all for him and [general manager] Brad [Treliving] to figure out. I don’t have a whole lot to say on that situation.”
Kampf played 59 games for the Leafs last season, but only got into one of the 13 playoff games.
The 30-year-old from Czechia skated on the fifth line during much of training camp before clearing waivers and being sent to the American Hockey League.
“I didn’t see frustration in camp,” Berube said. “He came in, and obviously there was competition at camp. He had to fight for a spot. We have too many players, and we got to make decisions.”
Kampf still has one year left beyond this season on his contract, which carries a $2.4-million annual average value in the NHL.
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Defenceman Chris Tanev left Saturday’s game on a stretcher after taking an unexpected bump from Flyers forward Matvei Michkov, who received a minor penalty for interference on the play.
“He is doing fine,” said Berube. “He is back home. He stayed overnight for precautionary reasons, but he is back here. We’ve all spoken to him. He is in a good spot.”
Saturday’s game marked Tanev’s first one back after sustaining a concussion on Oct. 21.
“Over the last day and a half here, a lot of positive news,” said Tavares. “He’s reached out to a lot of us and seems to be doing really well. I’m really happy for that.”
The Leafs have placed Tanev, who turns 36 in December, on injured reserve, which means he will miss at least a week. Philippe Myers draws into the lineup on Monday while Dakota Mermis is back up from the AHL to serve as the seventh defenceman.
‘He’s in a good spot’: Tanev back home in Toronto and doing fine following scary collision Chris Tanev was stretchered off the ice on Saturday night after he was hit from behind by Flyers forward Matvei Michkov, and was kept in hospital in Philadelphia overnight for evaluation. The gritty defenceman is now back home in Toronto and doing fine, but has been placed on injured reserve.
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Lines at Leafs skate:
Knies – Matthews – Robertson
Cowan – Tavares – Nylander
Joshua – Roy – Maccelli
Blais – Domi – Jarnkrok
Laughton, McMann, Lorentz
Rielly – Carlo
Benoit – McCabe
Ekman-Larsson – Myers
Mermis
Stolarz starts
Primeau
Woll
Lines at Penguins skate:
Hallander – Crosby – Rust
Mantha – Malkin – Tomasino
Novak – Kindel – Koivunen
Dewar – Lizotte – Acciari
Hayes
Wotherspoon – Karlsson
Shea – Letang
Pickering – Brunicke
Dumba – Clifton
Jarry starts
Silovs
