The Maple Leafs held a practice at Capital One Arena in Washington on Thursday.
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Growing up in a St. Louis suburb, Joseph Woll usually spent Thanksgiving with his dad’s extended family.
“I’ll miss my family for sure today,” the Leafs goalie told TSN after Thursday’s practice. “I haven’t been home for, obviously, some years for Thanksgiving. I kind of celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving a bit now when I’m in Toronto. I didn’t even realize that today was Thanksgiving until a day or two ago, because you’re in Canada, right, and you don’t really think about it.”
Whether he marks Thanksgiving in October up north or in November down south, Woll is feeling grateful. What’s he thankful for this year?
“I’d say I’m thankful for my family for starters,” Woll said. “Two, thankful to be here, to have this job, to be with these guys. I think I’ve really grown to have a lot of gratitude for it. And, yeah, I’m just really thankful to be here, to be in my life and be a part of it with these guys.”
The 27-year-old missed most of training camp and the start of the regular season this year for personal reasons. Since returning to the Leafs lineup on Nov. 15, Woll is 2-2-1 with a .921 save percentage. He played his best game of the year on Wednesday in Columbus where he turned aside 35 of 36 shots in an overtime win.
Leafs’ Woll has plenty to be thankful for this Thanksgiving Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll discusses what Thanksgiving was like for him growing up and how it felt to receive the player of the game belt after Toronto’s win over Columbus on Wednesday night.
The Leafs are certainly grateful to have Woll in net right now. John Tavares passed him the team’s player-of-the-game belt after Wednesday’s badly-needed victory, which helped Toronto climb out of last place in the Eastern Conference.
“It was a better game on our part, but there were a few things in the third, a couple of breakdowns we had that led to some good opportunities for them, and he just made a couple of massive saves,” Tavares said. “All game long he was real steady and composed and played solid. It’s not always perfect, and it’s just staying with it and finding a way through it and responding in some big situations, and he led the way.”
The Leafs had dropped seven of eight games (1-5-2) heading into Columbus. Berube is hoping Wednesday’s win will allow his team to build some confidence. Woll is certainly doing his part to help the underachieving group reclaim its swagger.
“It definitely does give the team confidence, for sure, knowing that he’s back there doing his job,” said Berube. “[Going] above and beyond, making the saves and giving us an opportunity to win a game. Kind of like just rubs [off on the team] and gives you more confidence to do things up the ice.”
In Toronto’s previous game on Saturday, Woll had been pulled in the second period after allowing four goals on 25 shots. Berube made the move to spark the team’s struggling skaters and preserve his goalie’s energy level. With Anthony Stolarz out for the foreseeable future with an upper-body injury, the Leafs will be leaning on Woll.
Woll understood the move by Berube, but made a point of telling the coach he didn’t like it. Woll wanted to remain in the fight with his teammates and try to help them rally.
Did getting pulled for just the second time in his NHL career create more motivation for Woll?
“Maybe a bit, yeah,” he acknowledged. “Maybe a bit of extra fire coming in. But I try to keep it relatively the same going into each game regardless of if I get pulled the night before or get a shutout the night before.”
Teammates appreciate the calmness and competitiveness Woll is providing.
“He’s always extremely poised and confident in the net no matter what’s going on or what happens,” said centre Auston Matthews. “He’s very focused and I think you can see that just in his demeanour and the way he asserts himself out there.”
“He’s been a brick wall,” said winger William Nylander. “He’s been unbelievable.”
Woll is so locked in on the Leafs that he didn’t even see Thanksgiving coming. He had planned to go shopping with teammate Matthew Knies on Thursday only to realize the store was closed.
On Friday, he’ll look to close the door on the Washington Capitals. Woll is 4-0-0 in his career against Alex Ovechkin and company with three of the wins coming at Capital One Arena.
Getting pulled gave Woll a little extra fire; inspiring confidence in Leafs Joseph Woll says he wasn’t very happy with getting pulled on Saturday but it did fire him up a bit for the next game. His teammates also express how much confidence he inspires in them with his stability and big saves at key moments.
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After sitting as a healthy scratch for the first time this season on Wednesday, Dakota Joshua will draw back into the Leafs lineup on Friday against the Capitals.
“Obviously it’s tough,” Joshua said. “You never want to be scratched, but I also take it with a grain of salt. You got to reset and come back and just be better.”
What is Joshua focusing on now?
“Just being, I guess, more of a force out there, driving the play, and just making more of an overall noticeable impact,” he said. “It’s not so much that it’s been bad, but it hasn’t been much of anything, and I think that’s been the problem. So, yeah, just got to find a way to make an impact.”
Joshua has produced just two goals and three assists in 22 games. He’s gone eight straight games without a point.
Berube wants the 6-foot-3, 218-pound winger to get back to his identity.
“He’s a big guy that has to be a physical, hard player to play against,” the coach noted. “He’s going to make and score his goals around the net, right? So I think just a little more puck touches in the offensive zone from the forecheck and then, you know, getting to the net front and winning those battles there and tipping pucks.”
Joshua does lead the team in hits (69), but has not made many momentum-changing plays.
“From our zone out, it is about anticipating and being direct — not only him, but his linemates — and putting him in a good spot on the forecheck,” Berube said. “If a puck enters the zone under control, get to the net and do your work there. Disrupt the other team that way, and make it hard. They don’t want to box him out. He is a big guy. He can be more engaged that way.”
Joshua admits it’s been tough adjusting to a new team after being traded from the Vancouver Canucks in the summer.
“You want to come in and perform,” the 29-year-old said. “So, you know, by my standards to come up short so far, you know, it’s not good, but there’s a lot of hockey left and my plan is to fix it.”
The Leafs are hoping Joshua can get back to the level that allowed him to produce 18 goals during the 2023-24 season.
“I just felt like he needed to get a reset,” Berube said. “Sometimes that puts a little more fire in him too.”
Joshua skated on the third line at practice beside Nicolas Roy and Bobby McMann.
‘Just be better’: Joshua draws back into Leafs lineup after healthy scratch Maple Leafs forwad Dakota Joshua explains what it felt like to be scratched on Wednesday night and how he plans to improve his game going forward.
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Nylander missed Thursday’s practice for maintenance, but seemed to be in good spirits when spotted around the dressing room area after the workout. Berube expects Nylander, who scored the overtime winner on Wednesday, to play in Washington.
It looks like Max Domi may be a healthy scratch for the first time with the Leafs. Domi skated as a placeholder in Nylander’s spot on the second line at practice beside Tavares and Easton Cowan. He also took reps in Nylander’s usual spot on the power play.
Domi played on the top line on Wednesday with Matthews and Knies. His giveaway led to Columbus’ only goal of the game.
Domi’s minus-13 mark is the worst on the team. Joshua is second-worst at minus-eight.
“I think, positionally, he’s been solid,” Berube said of Domi. “I know his plus/minus doesn’t say that, but I wouldn’t say positioning causes a lot of that. For me, it’s just getting engaged more in the game. Like, he’s got to get dirty down low in the offensive zone, win battles, and get more engaged that way, and get to the inside of the ice more. That’s what I see. When he’s skating and moving, he’s an effective player, but it’s too inconsistent.”
Domi has generated just three goals and three assists in 23 games. He’s played mostly out of position at centre this season as the Leafs dealt with injuries to multiple middle men in Matthews, Roy and Scott Laughton.
With Matthews, Roy and Knies all returning from injury absences on Wednesday, the battle for playing time up front is suddenly stiff. The Leafs placed Sammy Blais on waivers and he was reclaimed by the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday.
Matias Maccelli was a healthy scratch on Wednesday and split reps with Domi at Thursday’s practice, which suggests he will likely sit out again in Washington.
Berube prefers not to confirm lineup changes prior to game day.
Leafs Ice Chips: Maintenance day for Nylander; Robertson moves to top line William Nylander had a maintenance day and did not participate during Thursday’s practice for the Maple Leafs on American Thanksgiving. TSN’s Mark Masters has more on Dakota Joshua’s return after being a healthy scratch on Wednesday and what head coach Craig Berube wants to see from Max Domi.
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Matthews, who missed the previous five games with a lower-body injury, landed three shots on net and drew a penalty while playing 24 minutes and 35 seconds in Columbus.
“I felt good,” the Leafs captain said after his first game since Nov. 11. “Just tried to get my legs under me in the first half of the game. As the game went on, I felt more and more comfortable, and I thought our line had some good shifts in the O-zone and created some good opportunities. Just build from there and just try and get better and better each night.”
“Matty had a good game,” Berube said. “I thought he was competitive, and worked extremely hard, won a lot of battles. I thought he was good.”
With Matthews back, the Leafs debuted a new five-forward look on the power play. Matthews moved from his usual spot on the flank to the top of the zone.
“It’s about him getting the puck more on his stick,” Berube explained. “He’s got good quickness up there, and I like the way it looked today in practice, but that’s practice. We’ve got to try to get something going here on the PP because we need our power play to help us score goals.”
The Leafs power play took off last season after Mitch Marner moved to the quarterback spot, which is usually filled by a defenceman. It wasn’t a foreign idea to the winger, who actually took shifts as a defenceman in 5-on-5 situations under former Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe.
The Leafs converted on 24.8 per cent of their power plays last season, which tied for eighth overall. Toronto is clicking at 15 per cent this season, which is 28th overall.
Matthews, like Marner, has been nominated for the Selke Trophy, but the pair are much different offensive players. Marner is a gifted playmaker while Matthews is one of the game’s greatest goal scorers.
So, why are the Leafs moving Matthews away from the net?
“There’s going to be different looks for him up top,” Berube said. “I found that when he’s on the flank, they take him away a lot, so he’s not getting the shots. He’s not getting the volume. We’re not getting a puck in his hands enough and hopefully up top he gets the puck more.”
“His ability to adapt to different roles or situations is as good as any player in the league,” Tavares noted.
Going to a five-forward look can be risky, though. Toronto gave up a 3-on-1 chance to the Jackets during a third period power play and got bailed out by Woll.
“I think when you have five forwards, the ears perk up a little bit more for the killers,” Matthews said. “So just being there and supporting each other when there’s breakdowns and they’re coming the other way [is key]. I think the more repetitions we get, the more comfortable we’ll feel, and just try to work our way through that process, and just keep creating those chances. We had a few good looks, but I think it can definitely run a little bit smoother. I think the more repetitions we get the better we’ll be.”
The Leafs did not work on the power play at Tuesday’s practice.
Will moving Matthews to quarterback spot spark Leafs’ power play? Auston Matthews will be manning the quarterback spot on the Maple Leafs’ five-forward power play and the team discusses what they expect from their captain at the position.
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Big winger Tom Wilson leads the Capitals in goals (12), points (24) and hits (66). How rare is he in today’s game?
“I don’t know if there’s many guys built like that,” said Tavares. “A lot of speed, size, obviously physically extremely strong, and then his ability to score, play make, play in all situations. Yeah, it’s a unique type of player.
“Why is it rare? It’s hard to say. You know, I think we got one of our own that’s pretty unique in Kniesy and what he can do from his physical attributes, obviously his skills and things he can do with the puck the way he impacts the game.”
Knies was fifth on the Leafs in points last season and third in hits.
Berube thinks Wilson is “definitely” a good role model for Knies, who is still just 23. But the coach also highlighted a difference between the pair.
“Wilson came in the league as more of a, I wouldn’t say an enforcer, but that was a big part of him, his identity, right, coming out of junior hockey,” Berube said. “You know, Knies, he comes out of college hockey. It’s a different mindset, right. But, yes, for sure, he could be that type of player to a certain extent, in my opinion.”
Is Caps’ Wilson a good role model for Leafs power forward Knies? John Tavares and Craig Berube talk about what makes Tom Wilson such a rare kind of player and if Matthew Knies has a chance of becoming that kind of unique power forward.
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Cowan delivered a beautiful one-timer goal late in the third period to help the Leafs force overtime in Columbus.
“He’s just got ice water in his veins,” said Berube. “He doesn’t feel the pressure. He just plays, and he knows his capabilities and what he can do.”
Teammates were quick to highlight the degree of difficulty on Cowan’s second career NHL goal.
“Shooting it from that side of the ice as a lefty is a hard shot,” Nylander noted. “He put it perfectly. It was incredible.”
“I didn’t see it go in,” said Tavares, who won a puck battle to set up the goal. “I honestly thought it was out of play for a second. And then, you know, you saw the reaction from him and it was unbelievable. Saw it on the bench, just how he was able to pick the corner like that, it was a hell of a shot.”
Cowan started the season as a healthy scratch and played two games in the American Hockey League earlier this month, but now appears to have a stranglehold on not just a roster spot, but a place in the top six.
“His game has really started to kind of grow and come on,” Tavares said. “You can see him, I think, getting more comfortable with the speed and the pace … and even just getting stronger on the puck as well.”
Cowan is currently occupying a spot on the top power play unit and received an early overtime shift on Wednesday. The pressure never seems to get to him.
“It’s just a mindset, you know, staying positive,” he explained. “Just enjoy the moment. Obviously late in the game you want to be out there and you want to help the team win, so definitely nice to score that goal. But just looking to keep building and keep getting better and keep winning hockey games.”
Cowan will experience another first on Friday night as he faces Ovechkin.
“It’s going to be cool,” he said. “You know, another player like [Sidney] Crosby. Obviously a legend in the game, and it’ll be definitely special, but just going to treat it like another game and try to get the win.”
Ovechkin has scored seven goals in the last seven games, which is a big reason why the Capitals are on a 5-1-1 run.
Leafs rookie Cowan shows ‘ice in his veins’ ahead of first Ovechkin game Maple Leafs rookie Easton Cowan explains where his mentality comes from and looks ahead to his first game against the legendary Alex Ovechkin on Friday night.
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Berube let the referees hear it after Dakota Mermis was assessed a roughing penalty in the first period on Wednesday night. The Leafs defenceman got into a skirmish with Jackets forward Zach Aston-Reese, whose helmet came off during their net-front battle.
One day later, Berube was still fuming.
“I thought it was a terrible call,” Berube said. “First of all, I know you can’t rip a guy’s helmet off, but that wasn’t intentional. They’re going at it, and he got punched twice in the head already. And I get it, you want to even it up, that’s fine, but then he’s pulling the guy down, and his helmet comes off. It’s like an accidental play. It was a tough call, I thought.”
Mermis got the only penalty on the play.
Berube also expressed displeasure with Oliver Ekman-Larsson receiving an extra two minutes as part of a scrum earlier in the first period.
The Leafs killed off both questionable calls and used that as a rallying point.
“Just being resilient there and the PK getting three kills was huge,” Nylander said.
‘Terrible call’: Leafs coach Berube still fuming about Mermis roughing penalty Maple Leafs defenceman Dakota Mermis and head coach Craig Berube share their thoughts on a questionable roughing penalty Mermis received late in the first period in Toronto’s win over Columbus on Wednesday night.
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Defenceman Brandon Carlo participated in his first full practice since sustaining a lower-body injury on Nov. 13. He will miss a sixth straight game on Friday.
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Lines at Thursday’s practice:
Knies – Matthews – Robertson
Domi/Maccelli – Tavares – Cowan
Joshua – Roy – McMann
Lorentz – Laughton – Jarnkrok
Rielly – Ekman-Larsson
Benoit – McCabe
Mermis – Stecher
Myers, Carlo
Woll
Hildeby
Power play units at Thursday’s practice:
QB: Matthews
Flanks: Domi/Maccelli, Cowan
Middle: Tavares
Net front: Knies
QB: Ekman-Larsson
Flanks: Rielly, Roberson
Middle: McMann
Net front: Roy
