LGD: Straight-To-DVD Sequel In Sunrise
By ThatsKappy
5 years agoIt’s Game Day!
Fresh off an impressive 4-2 win against the league-leading Tampa Bay Lightning, the Leafs are in Sunrise tonight to take on the lesser Florida team, in a lesser arena, with a (much) lesser camera angle. It’s fun all around on a rare Friday night game.
Leafs Lines
| LW | C | RW | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
 ANDREAS JOHNSSON Rating: 74.9#35 LW |  JOHN TAVARES Rating: 82.2#11 C |  MITCH MARNER Rating: 79.5#10 RW | FL1 Rating Rating: 78.88#11 FL1 |
 ZACH HYMAN Rating: 72.5#63 LW |  AUSTON MATTHEWS Rating: 84.9#5 C |  WILLIAM NYLANDER Rating: 74.7#42 RW | FL2 Rating Rating: 77.38#3 FL2 |
 PATRICK MARLEAU Rating: 72.1#69 LW |  NAZEM KADRI Rating: 76.5#40 C |  KASPERI KAPANEN Rating: 74.2#45 RW | FL3 Rating Rating: 74.25#2 FL3 |
 PAR LINDHOLM Rating: 71.0#98 LW |  FREDERIK GAUTHIER Rating: 68.4#187 C |  CONNOR BROWN Rating: 70.3#100 RW | FL4 Rating Rating: 69.89#23 FL4 |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | Defense | |
|---|---|---|
 MORGAN RIELLY Rating: 79.7#5 LD |  RON HAINSEY Rating: 72.6#46 RD | DL1 Rating Rating: 76.15#10 DL1 |
 JAKE GARDINER Rating: 77.0#12 LD |  NIKITA ZAITSEV Rating: 70.7#78 RD | DL2 Rating Rating: 73.83#15 DL2 |
 TRAVIS DERMOTT Rating: 73.7#44 LD |  IGOR OZHIGANOV Rating: 73.0#41 RD | DL3 Rating Rating: 73.35#5 DL3 |
Expect much of the same for the Leafs tonight. That means Hyman-Matthews-Nylander sticking together, and Kapanen and Kadri staying on the same line after a stellar showing last night.
No changes on the back end, meaning elite defenseman Nikita Zaitsev remains on the second pairing despite a 2-point night last night.
Panthers Lines
| LW | C | RW | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
 FRANK VATRANO Rating: 72.9#85 LW |  ALEKSANDER BARKOV Rating: 80.5#15 C |  EVGENII DADONOV Rating: 78.4#16 RW | FL1 Rating Rating: 77.25#20 FL1 |
 JONATHAN HUBERDEAU Rating: 77.7#17 LW |  VINCENT TROCHECK Rating: 77.4#34 C |  NICK BJUGSTAD Rating: 72.1#73 RW | FL2 Rating Rating: 75.75#11 FL2 |
 MIKE HOFFMAN Rating: 75.2#33 LW |  HENRIK BORGSTROM Rating: 73.0#81 C |  DENIS MALGIN Rating: 71.8#77 RW | FL3 Rating Rating: 73.34#5 FL3 |
 JAYCE HAWRYLUK Rating: 73.1#54 LW |  JARED MCCANN Rating: 71.2#133 C |  COLTON SCEVIOUR Rating: 69.5#174 RW | FL4 Rating Rating: 71.26#9 FL4 |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | Defense | |
|---|---|---|
 KEITH YANDLE Rating: 76.4#15 LD |  AARON EKBLAD Rating: 74.1#28 RD | DL1 Rating Rating: 75.23#18 DL1 |
 MICHAEL MATHESON Rating: 71.9#72 LD |  MARK PYSYK Rating: 70.1#86 RD | DL2 Rating Rating: 71.01#28 DL2 |
 IAN MCCOSHEN Rating: 69.4#121 LD |  JOSH BROWN | DL3 Rating Rating: 69.43#30 DL3 |
Vincent Trochek is back in the Panthers lineup for the first time since November 19th, when he broke his ankle. Surprise surprise that a good player draws back in against the Leafs, as is always the case.
Starting Goalies
Roberto Luongo versus Garret Sparks is your matchup tonight. Luongo has been dreadful over his last five games, with just an .807 save percentage through that stretch.
Sparks, meanwhile, has been mediocre at best throughout this season with the Leafs, and is riding a .905 save percentage into this game. Tonight will be his first game back since December 29th, prior to the concussion that had sidelined him for a couple of weeks.
Notes
- The drought continues for Auston Matthews, who now has just one goal in his last 11 games.
- William Nylander is also now at just 1G, 2A through 18 games.
- Can we please just break these slumps?
Puck Drop is at 7pm ET on SNO.
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