On Thanksgiving Monday, the Toronto Maple Leafs will take on the Chicago Blackhawks. This Turkey Day matchup between two Original Six teams definitely reminds me of the history of the NHL and that we should be thankful for hockey and what ways it has positively touched our lives.

On the other hand, this tilt between two firepower-filled rosters reminds me that today’s NHL is way better than the old days and we should be thankful that goals are stupidly fun.

According to Paul Hendrick, the lines for the Leafs are the same as their first game against Winnipeg:

For the Hawks, it appears their roster will only see one change, with them starting their backup Anton Forsberg. From DailyFaceoff, they’ll run:

Saad – Toews – Panik

Hartman – Schmaltz – Kane

Sharp – Anisimov – DeBrincat

Bouma – Wingels – Hayden

Keith – Seabrook

Kempny – Murphy

Forsling – Rutta

Forsberg

Crawford

These two offences have been absolutely dominating in the two games of the season for either side. We’ve got the Hawks, scoring 10 against the Penguins and 5 against the Blue Jackets; and the Leafs, scoring 7 against Winnipeg and 8 against the Rangers. That’s a ton of goals.

I fully expect some regression down to the typical ~6 goals per game (combined, not each… *cough* Leafs *cough*) as the season goes on, but there’s no question that there’s a ton of offensive firepower here.

Both teams obviously 2-0, one will leave beaten and the other will continue a winning streak. The Leafs, on paper, are likely the better team tonight, but I’d be very surprised if the Hawks weren’t the toughest opponent the Leafs will face in the early goings.

Tune in tonight at 7 pm Eastern on TSN4 to see this highly offensive game, and I’m not just talking about the Blackhawks’ logo!