The Toronto Maple Leafs continue their homestand on Saturday night, hosting the Edmonton Oilers, as they look to rebound from an overtime loss to the San Jose Sharks on Thursday.

Led by the offensive firepower of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, the two-time defending champions of the West are a difficult opponent on any given night. Speaking after morning skate on Saturday, captain Auston Matthews said these are ultimately the types of matches the Leafs look forward to.

“Yeah, it’s fun,” Matthews said. “These are the games that you want to get up for and you want to be prepared and ready for as a team and individually. It’s always a challenge, but I think everybody in this locker room embraces it.”

As they gear up to face the Oilers, they’ll be forced to deal with numerous absences, just as they have all season. In addition to the long list of key players on injured reserve (IR), William Nylander and Dakota Joshua missed practice Saturday morning due to illness and are game time decisions tonight. Matthews addressed Toronto’s ability to weather these continued absences, speaking on the positives he’s seen emerge from Toronto’s depth.

“It’s the nature of the game,”  Matthews said. “There’s more opportunities for the guys, that’s the great part about it. Guys can step up and have a bigger role, step into that and do well. I think everybody that has had to do that so far has done a really great job, whether it’s been defencemen, goaltending, forwards, all of the above. To have that depth is really important to us.”

Speaking of a player seizing opportunity, defenceman Troy Stecher has been strong for the Leafs since he was claimed off waivers in mid-November from the Oilers. As the 31-year-old gets ready to face his former Edmonton teammates for the first time, Matthews spoke highly of what Stecher has brought to the Leafs on and off the ice.

“He’s been great, he’s gotten really comfortable right away,” Matthews said. “He’s a guy that communicates a lot, he’s a professional. He’s been great in the locker room, has really fit in with our group well. It’s not easy switching teams and coming into a new situation, but I think he’s handled it really well. He’s played some hard minutes, some tough matchups, and I think he really embraces that.”

In 11 games so far with the Leafs, Stecher has a goal and three assists. The four-point total nears the seven points he accumulated in 66 games with the Oilers last season.

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