The boys tee up Leafs/Stars & Mike Commito drops by to talk about his new book: Leafs Morning Take

It’s another Maple Leafs gameday, baby!

Sheldon Keefe’s squad is in Dallas to tangle with the 4-0-1 Stars. Through three games of their five-game road trip, the Leafs are 2-1-0. Of course, they’re coming off that 4-1 win in Washington on Tuesday night.

We kicked off the Thursday edition of Leafs Morning Take by attacking the Auston Matthews vs. Jack Hughes debate. The Devils star has 17 points in 6 games to start the season, which has prompted some to wonder who the best American player in the game is right now. As far as I’m concerned, it’s still Matthews. Honestly, this reminds me a lot of the Matthew Tkachuk lovefest from last spring when he dragged the Florida Panthers all the way to the Stanley Cup Final. At any rate, it’s a fun debate nevertheless. We love Auston Matthews in these parts.

After that, presented by DoorDash, in The Appetizer, we touched on the NHL decentralizing the draft. Selfishly, I hate it because I love getting gooned up at these events —but such is life. In the grand scheme of things, it’s probably the right decision, especially with the NHL seemingly having no appetite to make substantial changes to the schedule. It is what it is. No more booing Bettman, no more awkward player hugs. Oh well.

Meantime, author/hockey historian Mike Commito joined us to talk about his new book, ‘Leafs 365: Daily Stories from the Ice.’ It was a fun chat. Yes, we talked about the Game 7 collapse to Boston, and yes, we talked about the David Ayres Zamboni game.

Lastly, brought to you by Wendy’s, we previewed tonight’s Leafs/Stars game. Surprisingly, Scott Wedgewood and not Jake Oettinger will start for the Stars. Should be a fun one at the American Airlines Center.

Join us at 11 AM ET on Friday for a full recap of Leafs/Stars as well as a preview of Leafs/Preds in Nashville on Saturday night. Furthermore, the incomparable Jackie Redmond of the NHL Network, TNT, & WWE will drop by to talk about her beloved Maple Leafs.