With every new day comes a different looking Maple Leafs lineup, but this time, it might be the one we see in Wednesday night&#8217;s season opener.
One of the biggest question marks heading into this week was whether or not John Tavares would be able to play in Toronto&#8217;s first game of the season. An oblique strain has kept him out of the Maple Leafs&#8217; lineup since September 24th.
But there could be some good news on that front as the 32-year-old stepped onto the ice at Ford Performance Centre in a regular jersey.
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Coach checks in with the captain ahead of Leafs morning skate 
John Tavares taking part in his first team skate since suffering the oblique strain on Sept 24 <a href="https://twitter.com/TSN_Edge?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TSN_Edge</a> <a href="https://t.co/zYjAdMU3Zj">pic.twitter.com/zYjAdMU3Zj</a>
&mdash; Mark Masters (@markhmasters) <a href="https://twitter.com/markhmasters/status/1578384758551330816?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 7, 2022</a></blockquote>
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This is the first time Tavares participated in a full practice with the team since being injured a few weeks ago. And with things progressing the way they are, it could mean the Maple Leafs&#8217; captain could be ready for opening night.
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Tavares says he’s trending in the right direction but will keep assessing with medical staff heading into Wednesday’s opener.
&mdash; Lance Hornby 🇺🇦 (@sunhornby) <a href="https://twitter.com/sunhornby/status/1579525384118632448?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 10, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Even Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe says the chances of Tavares playing on Wednesday night are good.
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Sheldon Keefe says “if all goes well” throughout the rest of the day, John Tavares will practice tomorrow as if he’s going to play on Wednesday.
&mdash; Joshua Kloke (@joshuakloke) <a href="https://twitter.com/joshuakloke/status/1579529434029514753?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 10, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Having Tavares back in the lineup makes the Maple Leafs&#8217; lineup decisions very interesting, not like they already weren&#8217;t. It seems as though that with Toronto&#8217;s captain returning to the lineup, Nick Robertson is back on the outside looking in.
But Denis Malgin, who had an incredible camp with Toronto, looks to have made the team.
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Leafs lines from practice Oct. 10/22
Bunting-Matthews-Marner Nylander-Tavares-Malgin Engvall-Kerfoot-Jarnkrok AstonReese-Kampf-AubeKubel Extra:Robertson, Holmberg
Rielly-Brodie Muzzin-Holl Giordano-Sandin Kral-Villeneuve
Murray Samsonov
&mdash; David Alter (@dalter) <a href="https://twitter.com/dalter/status/1579506116949868545?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 10, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Aside from the Maple Leafs&#8217; second line, which has William Nylander at left wing and Malgin on the right, everything remains status quo.
This lineup makes the most sense for opening night, especially with Robertson out of the mix. It&#8217;s obviously a tough call, but having the 21-year-old on the outside allows for Malgin to stay in, avoiding waivers.
Robertson has the ability to go down to the Toronto Marlies since he is waivers exempt, but Malgin does not. It only makes sense to have Robertson go down for now, and maybe come back up once there&#8217;s an opportunity to get into the Maple Leafs&#8217; lineup.
But it won&#8217;t be on Wednesday if Tavares can&#8217;t play.
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Sheldon Keefe tells reporters that, yes, if John Tavares (oblique) is unavailable Wednesday, the Maple Leafs will have to dress one skater short on opening night in Montreal.
&mdash; luke fox (@lukefoxjukebox) <a href="https://twitter.com/lukefoxjukebox/status/1579531516090408960?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 10, 2022</a></blockquote>
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The reasoning behind this is because<a href="https://twitter.com/CapFriendly/status/1579532253713289222?s=20&amp;t=MgiXzqcAB_M_0-NBnhZnKw"> the Maple Leafs will be $4 under the cap</a> with both Jordie Benn and Timothy Liljegren on LTIR to begin the season, Carl Dahlstrom on SOIR (Season Opening Injured Reserve), and Robertson, Wayne Simmonds, and Kyle Clifford in the minors.
It&#8217;s not the worst situation in the world for Toronto to have Robertson not in the lineup, but it&#8217;s also not the best as he did have a great camp and was worthy of a lineup spot.
There was another question that needed to be answered prior to Wednesday night&#8217;s season opener, though, and that was who&#8217;s going to be the starting goaltender for Toronto.
And well, that question has been answered.
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Matt Murray starts Wednesday vs <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GoHabsGo?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GoHabsGo</a>
Ilya Samsonov starts Thursday vs <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ALLCAPS?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ALLCAPS</a>, his former team.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LeafsForever?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LeafsForever</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NHL?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NHL</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/NHLdotcom?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NHLdotcom</a>
&mdash; Dave McCarthy (@DaveAMcCarthy) <a href="https://twitter.com/DaveAMcCarthy/status/1579531569110605824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 10, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Matt Murray will be the starting netminder in Montreal on Wednesday and Ilya Samsonov will get the start in the Maple Leafs&#8217; home opener on Thursday. And yes, it will be against his former team, the Washington Capitals.
Though it seems like all of the news has just dropped regarding Toronto&#8217;s lineup decisions, it&#8217;s safe to say the next few days of hockey will be very interesting. The regular season is officially back on Wednesday.

With every new day comes a different looking Maple Leafs lineup, but this time, it might be the one we see in Wednesday night's season opener.

One of the biggest question marks heading into this week was whether or not John Tavares would be able to play in Toronto's first game of the season. An oblique strain has kept him out of the Maple Leafs' lineup since September 24th.

But there could be some good news on that front as the 32-year-old stepped onto the ice at Ford Performance Centre in a regular jersey.

https://twitter.com/markhmasters/status/1578384758551330816?s=20&amp;t=MgiXzqcAB_M_0-NBnhZnKw

This is the first time Tavares participated in a full practice with the team since being injured a few weeks ago. And with things progressing the way they are, it could mean the Maple Leafs' captain could be ready for opening night.

https://twitter.com/sunhornby/status/1579525384118632448?s=20&amp;t=MgiXzqcAB_M_0-NBnhZnKw

Even Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe says the chances of Tavares playing on Wednesday night are good.

https://twitter.com/joshuakloke/status/1579529434029514753?s=20&amp;t=MgiXzqcAB_M_0-NBnhZnKw

Having Tavares back in the lineup makes the Maple Leafs' lineup decisions very interesting, not like they already weren't. It seems as though that with Toronto's captain returning to the lineup, Nick Robertson is back on the outside looking in.

But Denis Malgin, who had an incredible camp with Toronto, looks to have made the team.

https://twitter.com/dalter/status/1579506116949868545?s=20&amp;t=MgiXzqcAB_M_0-NBnhZnKw

Aside from the Maple Leafs' second line, which has William Nylander at left wing and Malgin on the right, everything remains status quo.

This lineup makes the most sense for opening night, especially with Robertson out of the mix. It's obviously a tough call, but having the 21-year-old on the outside allows for Malgin to stay in, avoiding waivers.

Robertson has the ability to go down to the Toronto Marlies since he is waivers exempt, but Malgin does not. It only makes sense to have Robertson go down for now, and maybe come back up once there's an opportunity to get into the Maple Leafs' lineup.

But it won't be on Wednesday if Tavares can't play.

https://twitter.com/lukefoxjukebox/status/1579531516090408960?s=20&amp;t=MgiXzqcAB_M_0-NBnhZnKw

The reasoning behind this is because<a href="https://twitter.com/CapFriendly/status/1579532253713289222?s=20&amp;t=MgiXzqcAB_M_0-NBnhZnKw"> the Maple Leafs will be $4 under the cap</a> with both Jordie Benn and Timothy Liljegren on LTIR to begin the season, Carl Dahlstrom on SOIR (Season Opening Injured Reserve), and Robertson, Wayne Simmonds, and Kyle Clifford in the minors.

It's not the worst situation in the world for Toronto to have Robertson not in the lineup, but it's also not the best as he did have a great camp and was worthy of a lineup spot.

There was another question that needed to be answered prior to Wednesday night's season opener, though, and that was who's going to be the starting goaltender for Toronto.

And well, that question has been answered.

https://twitter.com/DaveAMcCarthy/status/1579531569110605824?s=20&amp;t=MgiXzqcAB_M_0-NBnhZnKw

Matt Murray will be the starting netminder in Montreal on Wednesday and Ilya Samsonov will get the start in the Maple Leafs' home opener on Thursday. And yes, it will be against his former team, the Washington Capitals.

Though it seems like all of the news has just dropped regarding Toronto's lineup decisions, it's safe to say the next few days of hockey will be very interesting. The regular season is officially back on Wednesday.

John Tavares could be in opening night lineup as Maple Leafs make final cuts

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