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Steven Lorentz’s Joe Bowen impersonation, Woll stops Berube in shootout at inaugural Leafs Fan Day
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Photo credit: Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images
Alex Hobson
Mar 19, 2026, 13:15 EDTUpdated: Mar 19, 2026, 13:12 EDT
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The season may be on the brink of a lost one for the Toronto Maple Leafs, but they made an effort to lift some spirits on Thursday  morning with their inaugural Leafs Fan Day public practice.
Hosted at Scotiabank Arena and with approximately 8000 Leafs fans in attendance, the day featured standard practice proceedings such as drills and line rushes, along with some extra curriculars including a 3-on-3 scrimmage and a shootout.
As the scrimmage was going on, longtime Leafs fan and Kitchener native Steven Lorentz treated fans in attendance to his Joe Bowen impersonation as he broadcasted the happenings of the scrimmage on the video board.
As most fan-welcomed practices do, Leafs Fan Day also included a shootout, which was not limited to just players. Head coach Craig Berube, who has over 1000 games under his belt as a player, took a crack at the shootout in which he was denied by goaltender Joseph Woll.
Those weren’t all for the extra curriculars, however. The Leafs took part in a rapid-fire version of ‘Simon Says’ on the blueline, with Woll and Nick Robertson going head-to-head in a wild ending to the game, one that Robertson caught the short end of the stick for.
An interview between longtime Maple Leafs broadcaster Joe Bowen and veteran defenceman Oliver Ekman-Larsson revealed the name of OEL’s newborn son. Ekman-Larsson missed the Leafs’ game on Sunday night to be with his wife for the birth of his child.
They couldn’t conclude the day without getting some of the team’s furry friends involved, with William Nylander and Matthew Knies’ dogs getting in on the action.
Now that we’ve got all of the fun stuff out of the way, back to business. Here were the Leafs’ lines from the initial portion of actual practice. Morgan Rielly was absent from the festivities due to a bout with the flu, so Philippe Myers stood in his place.
The season may not be a fun one to look back on, and there’s plenty of valid criticism that can be directed at MLSE CEO Keith Pelley for how things have gone this year, but the implementation of Leafs Fan Day is a positive from a year full of negatives and should only get better and better. Especially if the Leafs are in a playoff spot this time next year.

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