LGD: Weeknight At Randy’s
By ThatsKappy
6 years agoIt’s Game Day!
After a tough loss on Monday night, the Leafs (7-5-0) move on to Anaheim to take on the Ducks (6-4-1) with their sights set on getting back to their winning ways.
Despite this game coming in the middle of a difficult road trip, tonight would be a perfect opportunity for the Leafs to pounce on an injured team and come out with a win. Plus, the Leafs should have a great deal of insight into Anaheim’s game plan after playing such stellar Randy Carlyle Hockey against the Sharks on Monday.
Leafs Lines
| LW | C | RW |
|---|---|---|
 ZACH HYMAN |  AUSTON MATTHEWS |  WILLIAM NYLANDER |
 LEO KOMAROV |  NAZEM KADRI |  JOSH LEIVO |
 JAMES VAN RIEMSDYK |  PATRICK MARLEAU |  CONNOR BROWN |
 MATT MARTIN |  TYLER BOZAK |  MITCH MARNER |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | |
|---|---|
 MORGAN RIELLY |  RON HAINSEY |
 JAKE GARDINER |  CONNOR CARRICK |
 ANDREAS BORGMAN |  NIKITA ZAITSEV |
The new-look Leafs make their first in-game appearance tonight after some major line-juggling from Babcock in practice yesterday. Patrick Marleau slots in at centre on the third line, and Tyler Bozak drops to the fourth line. Dominic Moore is out, marking the first game this year in which neither Dom Moore nor Eric Fehr will dress. But, most importantly, Josh Leivo is in! Even more impressive: Josh Leivo slotting in is not as a result of another player losing all of their limbs. Personally, I’d like to congratulate everybody who was mad online after the Sharks game for somehow getting Mike Babcock to listen to them.
On the back end, Roman Polak has (finally) been scratched, and Connor Carrick is back in on a pairing with Jake Gardiner. Zaitsev drops down to the third pairing with Borgman, and will hopefully be a bit of a stabilizing presence for the rookie defenseman. At the very least, he can’t make the third pair any worse.
Ducks Lines
| LW | C | RW |
|---|---|---|
 ANDREW COGLIANO |  RICKARD RAKELL |  JAKOB SILFVERBERG |
 ONDREJ KASE |  ANTOINE VERMETTE |  COREY PERRY |
 CHRIS WAGNER |  DEREK GRANT |  NICK RITCHIE |
 DENNIS RASMUSSEN |  KALLE KOSSILA |  LOGAN SHAW |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | |
|---|---|
 HAMPUS LINDHOLM |  JOSH MANSON |
 FRANCOIS BEAUCHEMIN |  BRANDON MONTOUR |
 JAYCOB MEGNA |  SAMI VATANEN |
The Ducks seem to have stolen their lines from my copy of NHL 08, both because Antoine Vermette is on the second line and also because they’ve clearly slotted in at least three guys that I once made in create-a-player (Kalle Kossila hello).
In all seriousness, the injury bug has bitten the Ducks badly. Ryan Kesler, Kevin Bieksa, Cam Fowler and Patrick Eaves are all on injured reserve, which has resulted in quite the Franken-lineup for the Ducks on the day after Halloween.
Starting Goalies
Expect former teammates John Gibson and Frederik Andersen to square off between the pipes tonight. Gibson has been stellar this season, rocking a .921 save percentage coming into this game. Andersen, meanwhile, has hopefully left his struggles behind after a strong performance in an otherwise-ugly game on Monday, stopping 36 of 38 shots. He’ll look to continue his strong play tonight, and will hopefully be rewarded with a win this time around.
Notes
- The Leafs were winless against the Ducks last season. They’ll look to get their first win against Randy Carlyle’s new team tonight.
- Francois Beauchemin is apparently back with the Ducks for a third stint, which I somehow completely missed. File that under further evidence that the Ducks have been playing NHL 08.
- After a goal in Monday’s game, Auston Matthews is already at 49 career Regular Season goals. He could hit 50 tonight, in just his 95th career game.
Puck drop is at 10pm tonight on Sportsnet One.
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