LGD: Matt Martin Bowl
By ThatsKappy
5 years agoIt’s Game Day!
Coming off of a 4-2 win, the Leafs look to make it six straight tonight as they welcome Matt Martin, Leo Komarov, Lou Lamoriello and the Brooklyn / Long Islanders to town.
The Islanders also played last night, knocking off the Senators 6-3 as they continue to stay relevant in the playoff picture. The Isles have been a notoriously stingy team on the back end, allowing the third-fewest goals in the league this season (101), while their offense hasn’t quite been remarkable, sitting 21st in the league with just 107 goals. Let’s see how those trends will hold up tonight.
Leafs Lines
| LW | C | RW | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
 ANDREAS JOHNSSON Rating: 75.1#29 LW |  JOHN TAVARES Rating: 82.8#9 C |  MITCH MARNER Rating: 80.3#9 RW | FL1 Rating Rating: 79.37#11 FL1 |
 PATRICK MARLEAU Rating: 73.4#41 LW |  AUSTON MATTHEWS Rating: 86.1#5 C |  KASPERI KAPANEN Rating: 74.3#47 RW | FL2 Rating Rating: 77.94#2 FL2 |
 CONNOR BROWN Rating: 71.0#86 LW |  NAZEM KADRI Rating: 78.0#29 C |  WILLIAM NYLANDER Rating: 75.1#41 RW | FL3 Rating Rating: 74.70#2 FL3 |
 PAR LINDHOLM Rating: 71.6#79 LW |  FREDERIK GAUTHIER Rating: 69.7#173 C |  TREVOR MOORE Rating: 73.6#56 RW | FL4 Rating Rating: 71.63#4 FL4 |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | Defense | |
|---|---|---|
 MORGAN RIELLY Rating: 81.6#3 LD |  RON HAINSEY Rating: 72.8#41 RD | DL1 Rating Rating: 77.18#8 DL1 |
 JAKE GARDINER Rating: 77.7#7 LD |  NIKITA ZAITSEV Rating: 71.3#67 RD | DL2 Rating Rating: 74.51#9 DL2 |
 TRAVIS DERMOTT Rating: 73.7#41 LD |  IGOR OZHIGANOV Rating: 71.9#54 RD | DL3 Rating Rating: 72.77#6 DL3 |
Not a whole lot to see here. Zach Hyman and Tyler Ennis remain out longer-term for the Leafs, and it doesn’t appear as if the team will opt to slot in a rested guy on the second half of this back-to-back. Meh.
Islanders Lines
| LW | C | RW | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
 ANDERS LEE Rating: 77.2#19 LW |  BROCK NELSON Rating: 73.5#69 C |  JOSH HO-SANG Rating: 72.8#64 RW | FL1 Rating Rating: 74.51#26 FL1 |
 ANTHONY BEAUVILLIER Rating: 73.9#36 LW |  MATHEW BARZAL Rating: 79.4#24 C |  JOSH BAILEY Rating: 73.8#53 RW | FL2 Rating Rating: 75.73#10 FL2 |
 TOM KUHNHACKL Rating: 68.9#124 LW |  VALTTERI FILPPULA Rating: 71.1#137 C |  LEO KOMAROV Rating: 69.2#118 RW | FL3 Rating Rating: 69.77#30 FL3 |
 MATT MARTIN Rating: 69.0#122 LW |  CASEY CIZIKAS Rating: 72.0#107 C |  ROSS JOHNSTON Rating: 69.7#104 RW | FL4 Rating Rating: 70.25#17 FL4 |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | Defense | |
|---|---|---|
 NICK LEDDY Rating: 72.8#54 LD |  JOHNNY BOYCHUK Rating: 73.1#38 RD | DL1 Rating Rating: 72.98#25 DL1 |
 ADAM PELECH Rating: 71.4#82 LD |  RYAN PULOCK Rating: 70.7#82 RD | DL2 Rating Rating: 71.06#26 DL2 |
 DEVON TOEWS Rating: 73.0#51 LD |  SCOTT MAYFIELD Rating: 72.2#50 RD | DL3 Rating Rating: 72.59#7 DL3 |
“We’re a team” -The New York Islanders, probably
This team is somehow staying afloat this season, so whatever. Jordan Eberle and Andrew Ladd are out tonight. Also, Devon Toews is apparently not related to NHL Top 100-player Jonathan.
Starting Goalies
With Frederik Andersen ailing, Garret Sparks gets the nod once again, with Kasimir Kaskisuo backing him up on an emergency basis. Sparks makes his third consecutive start in the Leafs crease, which is a weird thing to say.
For the Isles, nothing is clear yet. Robin Lehner is expected, but the Isles used both goaltenders last night against Ottawa. So, a mystery.
Notes
- Rumor has it there’s a certain Leaf playing his first game against his former team tonight. Can anybody confirm?
Puck Drop is at 7pm ET on CBC. It’s Hockey Night in Canada, baby.
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