LGD: Into The Fire
By ThatsKappy
6 years agoIt’s Game Day!
The Leafs (15-9-1) hit the road again to begin a three-game swing through western Canada. Tonight, they’ll draw the Calgary Flames, (13-9-1) for the first time this season.
Tonight will be a continuation of a grueling stretch that will see the Leafs play 12 of their last 15 games of 2017 on the road. It’ll be a test of strength for a Leafs team that’s won 7 of their last 10, but who also dropped a couple of games against weaker teams in the past week.
Leafs Lines
| LW | C | RW |
|---|---|---|
 ZACH HYMAN |  AUSTON MATTHEWS |  CONNOR BROWN |
 PATRICK MARLEAU |  NAZEM KADRI |  LEO KOMAROV |
 JAMES VAN RIEMSDYK |  TYLER BOZAK |  MITCH MARNER |
 MATT MARTIN |  DOMINIC MOORE |  WILLIAM NYLANDER |
Unfortunately, it looks like the Leafs will elect to go with the same lines as Saturday against Washington. That means that Roman Polak remains in, and Josh Leivo and Connor Carrick are both healthy scratches. Leivo looked good in his last game and Roman Polak has looked bad for as long as I can remember, so I’m not really sure the rationale behind that, but here we are. William Nylander is on the fourth line as well, which was a thing that started to happen around this time last year when the Leafs headed out west too. It’s frustrating, but we all know how he ended the year. He’ll be fine.
Flames Lines
| LW | C | RW |
|---|---|---|
 JOHNNY GAUDREAU |  SEAN MONAHAN |  MICHEAL FERLAND |
 MATTHEW TKACHUK |  MIKAEL BACKLUND |  MICHAEL FROLIK |
 SAM BENNETT |  MARK JANKOWSKI |  JAROMIR JAGR |
 FREDDIE HAMILTON |  MATT STAJAN |  TROY BROUWER |
For the Flames, that top line is a dangerous one. Johnny Gaudreau is red-hot to start the season, with 34 points through 23 games. Sean Monahan has been great as well. Both of those marks are tops on the team in those categories.
On the back end, Travis Hamonic has struggled early on this season after almost becoming a Leaf in the summer. I’m currently on the phone seeing if they will consider a Hamonic / Polak swap, so stay tuned.
Starting Goalies
The likely matchup tonight is one of Frederik Andersen versus Mike Smith. Smith has gotten off to a pretty good start for the Flames, though when you’re a team that’s been dealing with the likes of Jonas Hiller, Karri Ramo and a bad Brian Elliot for the last few years, I’m sure anything would be considered an upgrade. Smith’s .922 save percentage through 20 games is legitimately good, however, and I’m sure the Flames are happy to have some stability between the pipes.
For the Leafs, Frederik Andersen is back in goal after stealing a game in Carolina on Friday. The Leafs’ netminder has improved his save percentage all the way back to a .918 on the season, which is stellar considering where he was in October. Life comes at you fast, and FredEx is delivering.
Notes
- The Leafs and Flames split their season series last season, with the home team recording a shutout in both of the two games.
- The Leafs face Mark Stone’s brother, Michael Stone, on the Calgary’s back end tonight. I wonder how many things he’ll do that Toronto media would go crazy over if Auston Matthews did the same.
- Matt Stajan, the lone remaining piece of the original Dion Phaneuf trade, is still kicking in Calgary after all these years. Good for him.
Puck Drop is at 9 pm ET on TSN4.
LGD BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE PINT
Make the Pint your home for all things game day. We give away a free pound of wings during every game either home or away. $4.40 mugs of Bud and Bud Lights.
Recent articles from ThatsKappy
