LGD: See You At Game 3

The day has come. The Toronto Maple Leafs, for just the fourth time in the past dozen and change years, will take home ice at the Air Canada Centre for a playoff game. Tonight, they’ll take on the Washington Capitals and attempt to take a defiant lead in their series.

Toronto Maple Leafs lines courtesy of DailyFaceoff.com

The table is out of date, but as we all know, Roman Polak is out for the year with an injury suffered Saturday night. We’re waiting to see who takes his place; Nikita Zaitsev participated in the morning skate today, but if he’s not ready, I’d expect Alexey Marchenko. Marchenko would be a downgrade, but he has performed well with Gardiner this year.

Washington Capitals lines courtesy of DailyFaceoff.com

Not expecting much of a change from the Capitals. There’s a chance that Karl Alzner gets replaced by Nate Schmidt, which, depending on how you feel about him as a player, could be good or bad for the Leafs.

I don’t know why we even bother talking about this section in the playoffs. It’s the starting goaltender on each team until their limbs fall off. Holtby and Freddy. They’ve both been great. Not much to say here, eh?

For months, while people shook their heads and said there was no chance at the Leafs making it into the playoffs, I had a bit of a secondary catch phrase: See You At Game 3. Naturally, tickets are expensive and time is finite, so I’ll be at my desk working for this game instead, but to those of you who are going?

Be as loud as you can. Yes, the ACC has a reputation for being on the quiet side, but much of that is because there hasn’t been anything to cheer for in a while. Over the past few months, that tone has changed. Keep that up. Participate in every chant, make noise before every draw, and really show this team the support that you’ve internalized while waiting for the right time.

This is the right time. They’ve earned respect this year, and while they held their own in DC, this is still a tough opponent. Make the Leafs feel at home, and make the Caps feel intimidated as you possibly can. We know that Toronto fans can do this; the ACC is a mad-house for Raps playoff games, as is the SkyDome for the Jays and BMO Field for TFC. It makes a difference, so be a difference maker tonight.

Hockey Night in Canada. 7 PM. Tune in, and get excited. This is the most home ice has mattered in a long time, so make it feel that way.