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LGD: Kings and Breadwinners
Photo credit: © Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
By ThatsKappy
Oct 15, 2018, 12:18 EDT
Good morning Leafs Nation! Let’s get this bread.
Your Toronto Maple Leafs (5-1-0) are back in action tonight. After sweeping a four-game road swing, the Leafs are back at home as they welcome the Los Angeles Kings (2-2-1) to town.
It’s the only visit to Toronto for the Kings this season. The teams split their season series last year, with both teams winning at home. The Leafs will look to continue the better half of that trend tonight, as they eye a fifth consecutive win.
Leafs Lines
| LW | C | RW | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
 PATRICK MARLEAU Rating: 74.4#34 LW |  AUSTON MATTHEWS Rating: 86.3#5 C |  KASPERI KAPANEN Rating: 72.3#72 RW | FL1 Rating Rating: 77.64#18 FL1 |
 ZACH HYMAN Rating: 72.6#71 LW |  JOHN TAVARES Rating: 82.5#10 C |  MITCH MARNER Rating: 78.8#24 RW | FL2 Rating Rating: 77.95#2 FL2 |
 PAR LINDHOLM Rating: 73.4#72 LW |  NAZEM KADRI Rating: 77.2#33 C |  CONNOR BROWN Rating: 70.0#96 RW | FL3 Rating Rating: 73.51#6 FL3 |
 JOSH LEIVO Rating: 73.0#56 LW |  FREDERIK GAUTHIER Rating: 70.9#141 C |  ANDREAS JOHNSSON Rating: 73.2#53 RW | FL4 Rating Rating: 72.38#4 FL4 |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | Defense | |
|---|---|---|
 MORGAN RIELLY Rating: 79.3#5 LD |  RON HAINSEY Rating: 73.1#43 RD | DL1 Rating Rating: 76.20#14 DL1 |
 JAKE GARDINER Rating: 75.6#21 LD |  NIKITA ZAITSEV Rating: 70.8#81 RD | DL2 Rating Rating: 73.20#13 DL2 |
 TRAVIS DERMOTT Rating: 73.7#39 LD | DL3 Rating Rating: 73.74#3 DL3 |
Saturday’s lines remain for the Leafs tonight. That means Tyler Ennis and Martin Marincin remains out, while Andreas Johnsson and Igor Ozhiganov remain in.
William Nylander will miss his seventh game of the season tonight as well, but that goes without saying.
Kings Lines
| LW | C | RW | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
 ALEX IAFALLO Rating: 72.6#68 LW |  ANZE KOPITAR Rating: 81.1#14 C |  ILYA KOVALCHUK Rating: 73.8#46 RW | FL1 Rating Rating: 75.83#23 FL1 |
 TANNER PEARSON Rating: 73.2#49 LW |  ADRIAN KEMPE Rating: 70.3#152 C |  TYLER TOFFOLI Rating: 74.6#34 RW | FL2 Rating Rating: 72.71#24 FL2 |
 JEFF CARTER Rating: 77.7#31 C |  MIKE AMADIO Rating: 71.3#86 RW | FL3 Rating Rating: 74.49#1 FL3 | |
 KYLE CLIFFORD Rating: 69.3#129 LW |  NATE THOMPSON Rating: 66.9#182 C |  TREVOR LEWIS Rating: 70.7#146 RW | FL4 Rating Rating: 68.98#29 FL4 |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | Defense | |
|---|---|---|
 DEREK FORBORT Rating: 73.1#45 LD |  DREW DOUGHTY Rating: 80.9#8 RD | DL1 Rating Rating: 76.97#9 DL1 |
 JAKE MUZZIN Rating: 76.6#16 LD |  ALEC MARTINEZ Rating: 73.9#36 RD | DL2 Rating Rating: 75.30#6 DL2 |
 DION PHANEUF Rating: 71.4#78 LD |  PAUL LADUE Rating: 74.6#33 RD | DL3 Rating Rating: 73.01#6 DL3 |
Dion Phaneuf returns to Toronto, though I’m not sure he will recognize the city which is now an actual fun place to play hockey. Even more intriguing is Ilya Kovalchuk returning to Toronto for the first time since March 4, 2013! (more on that later).
While this team isn’t exactly rife with offensive juggernauts, they also haven’t been nearly as porous as the Leafs defensively either. They’re 23rd in goals for, but 11th in goals against. We’ll see how those stats look after tonight.
Starting Goalies
One handsome boi
credits: @prongstat
versus… one alleged boi?
Garret Sparks versus Jack Campbell is tonight’s goalie duel. Fun fact: there is an NHL goaltender named Jack Campbell! Who knew?
Sparks comes into the game 1-0-0 on the season with an .806 save percentage. That is not good, but tonight is another night. Tonight is also one of the rare occasions when a Leafs backup is taking to the crease without a tired team in front of him, which is pretty cool.
Campbell, meanwhile, is 2-2-0 with a .938 save percentage, so he’s actually not been half bad for somebody who didn’t exist until five minutes ago.
Notes
- Auston Matthews looks to continue his early-season tear. He’ll be looking for a goal in a 7th consecutive game tonight. Just goofy.
- The last time Ilya Kovalchuk played in Toronto, Jay McClement scored a goal, and David Clarkson was still a New Jersey Devil. Life comes at you fast.
Puck Drop is at 7:30ET on Sportsnet Ontario.
Breaking News
- Gavin McKenna might be a Mitch Marner replacement but not in year one
- Maple Leafs’ activity on Day 1 of free agency indicates heavy investment into next two years
- Ryan Tverberg reportedly signs 1-year, $850K extension with Maple Leafs
- Leafs development camp scrimmage notebook: McKenna’s playmaking, Koblar shines, Nansi wins superlatives, quick hits
- Gavin McKenna confirms he’ll wear No. 92 for Maple Leafs