Matthews out as Leafs look to keep lead on second place Oilers
3 years ago
For the second time this season, the Leafs will be without Auston Matthews against Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers as both teams square off in this three game series. The first time this happened, the Leafs found themselves on the winning side with a 4-2 win, but will they be able to repeat that success again?
It isn’t all bad news on the injury front for the Leafs, as they will see Joe Thornton and Jake Muzzin return after missing the last two games, and Jack Campbell will make his first start in over a month after dealing with a Tkachuk-related injury. Having the NHL leading goal scorer out and not being able to match up against the NHL leading point scorer will hurt, but the roster is a bit more well rounded in other areas at the very least.
The Leafs come into tonight’s game after splitting a two game series with the Calgary Flames. They struggled to beat David Rittich in a 3-0 loss in the first game, and those struggles continued until the dying minutes of the second game, as William Nylander got the game tying goal with just minutes to spare, and then won it in overtime as well.
The Oilers come into tonight’s game riding a 5 game win streak, with a win over the Jets and two against the Flames and the Canucks, helping their way to their current second place spot in the North division. They have a lot of the media hype now as people continue to be too afraid to admit the Leafs are good, and instead opt to go for the team that just beat up on the Vancouver Canucks.
Lineups
Toronto Maple Leafs
| LW | C | RW | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
 JOE THORNTON Rating: 72.3#74 LW |  JOHN TAVARES Rating: 77.6#15 C |  MITCH MARNER Rating: 76.6#18 RW | FL1 Rating Rating: 75.48#12 FL1 |
 ALEXANDER BARABANOV |  ALEXANDER KERFOOT Rating: 70.8#113 C |  WILLIAM NYLANDER Rating: 76.1#23 RW | FL2 Rating Rating: 73.46#15 FL2 |
 ZACH HYMAN Rating: 74.6#33 LW |  PIERRE ENGVALL Rating: 71.0#98 C |  ILYA MIKHEYEV Rating: 74.0#42 RW | FL3 Rating Rating: 73.20#7 FL3 |
 NIC PETAN |  TRAVIS BOYD Rating: 70.4#124 C |  JASON SPEZZA Rating: 69.4#126 RW | FL4 Rating Rating: 70.03#23 FL4 |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | Defense | |
|---|---|---|
 MORGAN RIELLY Rating: 75.3#14 LD |  T.J. BRODIE Rating: 74.2#27 RD | DL1 Rating Rating: 74.76#17 DL1 |
 JAKE MUZZIN Rating: 75.1#17 LD |  JUSTIN HOLL Rating: 72.0#61 RD | DL2 Rating Rating: 73.56#12 DL2 |
 TRAVIS DERMOTT Rating: 71.7#83 LD |  ZACH BOGOSIAN Rating: 71.4#76 RD | DL3 Rating Rating: 71.56#22 DL3 |
John Tavares finds himself on the top line with Mitch Marner and Thornton out of the lineup, while we see a repeat of the Barabonov-Kerfoot-Nylander that had some success against the Flames on Monday. Mikko Lehtonen finds himself out of the lineup again as Muzzin returns to the lineup.
Edmonton Oilers
| LW | C | RW | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
 RYAN NUGENT-HOPKINS Rating: 77.4#11 LW |  CONNOR MCDAVID Rating: 82.7#5 C |  JESSE PULJUJARVI | FL1 Rating Rating: 76.37#7 FL1 |
 DOMINIK KAHUN Rating: 72.5#69 LW |  LEON DRAISAITL Rating: 86.1#1 C |  KAILER YAMAMOTO Rating: 73.5#47 RW | FL2 Rating Rating: 77.36#1 FL2 |
 TYLER ENNIS Rating: 71.4#90 LW |  JUJHAR KHAIRA Rating: 69.1#152 C |  JOSH ARCHIBALD Rating: 71.2#95 RW | FL3 Rating Rating: 70.59#24 FL3 |
 ETHAN BEAR Rating: 71.8#66 LW |  GAETAN HAAS Rating: 69.6#139 C |  ALEX CHIASSON Rating: 72.2#76 RW | FL4 Rating Rating: 71.23#12 FL4 |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | Defense | |
|---|---|---|
 DARNELL NURSE Rating: 74.1#30 LD |  TYSON BARRIE Rating: 75.3#21 RD | DL1 Rating Rating: 74.69#18 DL1 |
 KRIS RUSSELL Rating: 70.1#115 LD |  ADAM LARSSON Rating: 71.1#88 RD | DL2 Rating Rating: 70.61#30 DL2 |
 CALEB JONES Rating: 71.0#14 LD |  EVAN BOUCHARD | DL3 Rating Rating: 71.77#15 DL3 |
Leafs Player to Watch: John Tavares
It was William Nylander’s turn to break out of him slump on Wednesday, now it’s John Tavares turn tonight. He’ll be expected to step up tonight with Matthews out of the lineup, especially against Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, so hopefully we can see a big performance from him.
Oilers Player to Watch: Connor McDavid
It feels like cheating to put McDavid here, but he torched the Leafs last time with two goals and an assist, one of them being a gorgeous end-to-end rush that saw him juke out the whole team. With Matthews out, it’ll make his job slightly easier, so let’s see what magic he can pull off tonight.
Leafs Starting Goalie: Jack Campbell
After missing the last month, Campbell will finally return to the crease to provide some much needed relief to Leafs fans’ anxiety, as Michael Hutchinson started three of the last four games (although he played quite well). It will be Campbell’s third start of the season, and first against the Oilers, as he currently has a 2-0 record with a .923 save percentage.
Oilers Starting Goalie: Mike Smith
Smith has surprised many with his strong start to the season, so he’ll get the start for the Oilers tonight. He’s 6-0 to start the season with a .944 save percentage and two shutouts. Like Campbell, Smith will also be facing his opponent tonight for the first time this season.
Puck drop is scheduled for 7pm EST, and you can catch the game on Sportsnet and CBC.
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