The Toronto Maple Leafs shook off the cobwebs in their exhibition match against the Montreal Canadiens at Scotiabank Arena on Tuesday, and while there were some aspects in the 4-2 victory that should give rise to optimism, there were also a few areas that should cause some concern and will have to be addressed between now and Sunday, when Toronto will open the best-of-five play-in round against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Positives
“Soup” is on
Coming off his MVP performance in scrimmages, winger Ilya Mikheyev converted in his first game since a wrist laceration in late December with a goal 33 seconds into the first period. The big Russian looks like he has cemented a spot in the top six with John Tavares and Mitch Marner and looking forward to next season, his presence might make Andreas Johnsson expendable.
Third line contribution
The unit of Nick Robertson-Alex Kerfoot-Kasperi Kapanen was Toronto’s most effective line of the night and utilized their speed advantage against the slower Montreal defense. Kerfoot scored short-handed early in the second and tipped a Morgan Rielly point shot with 25 seconds left in the middle frame for the game-winning goal.
Robertson saw just over 10 minutes of ice time on the night and other than a minor penalty for holding had a solid performance, assisting on Kerfoot’s goal and seeing some time of the Toronto second power play.
"I thought he had some great sequences, it was good to see him play with some confidence with the puck and also move his feet and work." Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe said after the game. "I'm not sure what his ice time ended up today, but I thought he had some shifts where he was noticeable in a positive way and it was so good to see."
Morgan Rielly
After a career year 72 point season, Rielly struggled with injuries and missed 23 games with a broken foot, returning just before the league shutdown in March. In likely his first unhampered game this season, the Leafs top blueliner scored a short-handed goal and two assists and led the club with four shots on goal.
Frederik Andersen
The concerns of subpar play during training camp and “October Freddy” showing up were unfounded for one night, as Andersen was steady in a 28-save performance against the Habs. Based on the Leafs still being challenged defensively, the pressure will be squarely on Andersen to be at his best for Toronto to advance in the playoffs.
Negatives
Parade to the Penalty Box
The Leafs showed a lack of discipline taking six minor penalties on the night but were saved by their penalty-killing unit, who were a perfect six-for-six and responded with two short-handed goals. Montreal is not a powerhouse offensively and taking that many careless infractions might come back to bite Toronto if it happens against Columbus with Pierre-Luc Dubois, Cam Atkinson, and Zach Werenski on the man advantage.
Power play fizzles
The Toronto power play seemed tentative and out of sync at times (going 0 for 3), which might be understandable after a long layoff, but could be fatal in a short series. The Leafs do not draw a ton of penalties and will need to take advantage of their chances on the PP against an opponent that limits offensive chances at even strength.
Tyson Barrie
While Rielly and Jake Muzzin were sharp, the performance of Tyson Barrie left a lot to be desired. Barrie will be a key to the Leafs success as the quarterback on the top power-play unit, but that is mitigated by his defensive inadequacies five-on-five.
Keefe is trying to limit the damage by playing Barrie on the third pairing, but there are still instances when his propensity for turnovers comes back to bite Toronto.
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