The Toronto Maple Leafs take a quick trip to Ottawa to play the Senators tonight. Coming into the game, the Senators have a record of 28-40-6, but they did the Maple Leafs a big favor by beating the Boston Bruins on Thursday night by a score of 3-2.
All three Senators’ goals came in the second period to erase a 2-0 deficit. The Senators are an up-and-coming team with some great young players, so the Maple Leafs can’t take this one for granted.
In this post, I’ll take a look at some of the players’ moves that are occurring before Saturday’s game.
Related: Three Takeaways from Maple Leafs’ 7-3 Win Over the Capitals
Player Move One: Ondrej Kase Isn’t Returning Tonight, But He Is Skating
Ondrej Kase has been sidelined from the effects of yet another concussion; however, the good news is that he’s making progress and skated yesterday before the team’s practice. There is no timetable yet for Kase’s return to the lineup; however, he’d be a solid playoff performer and the team would certainly like to have him back.
In fact, just to see him up and around – and skating – is a good sign for his health. Maple Leafs’ head coach Sheldon Keefe said as much, noting that he was encouraged to see Kase back on the ice.
Keefe says it was a good positive step for Kase to be out on the ice today.
As far as playoffs go, he’s hopeful both Kase and Sandin could be available for the playoffs but there is no timetable on a return for either at this point.
— David Alter (@dalter) April 15, 2022
Player Move Two: Erik Kallgren Gets the Start Tonight
Rookie goalie Erik Kallgren will be the starter tonight. His last game didn’t go so well, and he gave up four goals to the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday. He’s looking for a bounce-back game where he doesn’t let in four goals as he did in his last start.
Can the Toronto Maple Leafs actually win the Stanley Cup if Erik Kallgren is their starting goaltender?I know the Toronto Maple Leafs want Jack Campbell to be their starter for the playoffs, but what if he’s not healthy enough or falters down thehttps://t.co/gNcqwRimM9
— Shop TOR Hockey (@ShopTORHockey) April 14, 2022
On the season, Kallgren sports a record of 5-3-1, a goals-against-average of 2.93, and a save percentage of .899. He’s appeared in 10 appearances. Kallgren gets the first game in the back-to-back scenario, and Jack Campbell will get the second start back in Toronto on Sunday against the New York Islanders.
Player Move Three: Jake Muzzin Won’t Be Able to Play Tonight
Jake Muzzin will miss tonight’s game with an undisclosed injury. It was also reported that he won’t be available to play Sunday’s game either. His place will likely be taken by Justin Holl.
Muzzin had returned to the active lineup for Thursday’s after he missed Tuesday’s game with a non-concussion injury. The report is that the “undisclosed ailment” has flared up again. Muzzin didn’t skate on Friday and won’t play either game on the weekend. However, don’t look for Muzzin to miss many games in the near future.
Player Move Four: Kristians Rubins Has Been Called Up to the Big Club
With Muzzin missing the two games, Kristians Rubins was called up from the AHL’s Toronto Marlies on an emergency basis for the weekend The word is that he’s likely to play against the Senators.
Rubins has played three games with the Maple Leafs so far this season. He’s scored 10 points in 52 games with the Marlies on the season.
Related: Matt Knies Informs the Maple Leafs He’s Going Back to School
The post Maple Leafs’ Player Moves Before Senators Game Tonight appeared first on NHL Trade Talk.
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