We need a modernized version of the Abbott and Costello classic comedy sketch, “Who’s on First?”
“Who’s in goal for the Maple Leafs?” has a nice ring to it.
Coming off a 2-1 OT victory in Sunrise on Monday night, the Leafs will visit Tampa tonight for a tone setter ahead of the start of their first-round showdown with the Bolts next week.
Ilya Samsonov, Toronto’s projected Game 1 starter, made 45 stops against the Panthers. He was outstanding. I don’t care what the circumstances are, if I’m Sheldon Keefe, there’s no way you can play your No. 1 goalie in both ends of a back-to-back this close to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
For what it’s worth, not that it means much for tonight or next week, this one will act as the rubber match for the three-game season series between the Leafs and Lightning. Each squad has won on home ice.
Toronto’s 8-4-1 in the second game of a back-to-back this season.
&nbsp;
TIME: 7 PM ET (TSN)
&nbsp;
<h3>STARTING GOALIES:</h3>
TOR Ilya Samsonov &#8211; LIKELY (27-10-5, 2.33, 0.919, 4 SO)
@
TBL Andrei Vasilevskiy &#8211; LIKELY (32-21-4, 2.63, 0.916, 4 SO)
&nbsp;
<h3>PROJECTED LINEUPS:</h3>
Bunting-Matthews-Marner
Tavares-O&#8217;Reilly-Nylander
Knies-Acciari-Kerfoot
Aston-Reese-Kampf
&nbsp;
McCabe-Brodie
Giordano-Holl
Rielly-Liljegren
Schenn
&nbsp;
Hagel-Point-Kucherov
Stamkos-Paul-Killorn
Colton-Cirelli-Eyssimont
Maroon-Bellemare-Perry
&nbsp;
Hedman-Perbix
Sergachev-Raddysh
Cole-Cernak
&nbsp;
<h3>THREE STORYLINES: </h3>
WHO PLAYS? WHO RESTS?
With the team in a cap crunch and several players dealing with bumps and bruises, it’ll be interesting to see how Sheldon Keefe deploys his lineup. What makes things even more intriguing is tonight’s opponent. Will Keefe show Tampa anything? Does it matter? We’ll get our answers. Also, what’s the plan with Auston Matthews? He got No. 40; it’s time to rest him. I want this team as healthy as possible for Game 1.
JUST GET TO THE END
Sure, there’s a way the Leafs can use this one as a tone setter of sorts for what’s to come next week, but the most important thing undoubtedly is to find a way to escape the game with full health in fact. Again, it gets back to the whole lineup conversation. For starters, I would play Matthew Knies as much as possible. He got his feet wet last night and didn’t look out of place. Keep throwing him out there! Additionally, I wouldn’t put any of my money makers in vulnerable positions. For example, there’s no need for Mitch Marner to take reps on the penalty kill right now. Be smart. Two games left. Get there.
SET A TONE
Believe it or not, as advertised above, I think there’s a way to set a tone without paying a physically price. Personally, I just want to see the Leafs play with confidence, pace, and urgency. When they’re at their best, they come at their opposition in waves. Regardless of what Tampa’s lineup looks like tonight, it’s never early to start showing Jon Cooper and company what they’re in for. Over the past few years, both squads have played each other tough, and I don’t expect any different tonight. Good time to focus on team defence. I want to see some boring hockey.
&nbsp;
<h3><a href="https://www.betano.ca/">BETANO</a> BETTING PLAY:</h3>
Mitch Marner Assist (-143)
<a href="https://gml-grp.com/C.ashx?btag=a_24038b_2065c_&amp;affid=7966&amp;siteid=24038&amp;adid=2065&amp;c=" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://gml-grp.com/C.ashx?btag%3Da_24038b_2065c_%26affid%3D7966%26siteid%3D24038%26adid%3D2065%26c%3D&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1680711165888000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3UoxaQYQCWjYW69YYzcSZQ">Discover Betano.ca</a> &#8211; a premium Sports Betting and Online Casino experience. Offering numerous unique and dynamic betting options along with diverse digital and live casino games, Betano is where The Game Starts Now. 19+. Please play responsibly.
<img data-recalc-dims="1" loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-91264" src="https://i0.wp.com/publish.theleafsnation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/04/Betano.png?resize=300%2C167&#038;ssl=1" alt="" width="300" height="167" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/publish.theleafsnation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/04/Betano.png?resize=300%2C167&amp;ssl=1 300w, https://i0.wp.com/publish.theleafsnation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/04/Betano.png?w=727&amp;ssl=1 727w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
 
<h3>MITCH’S DISHES:</h3>
<a href="https://www.skipthedishes.com/search/Mitch%27s%20Dishes?utm_source=Game">Order Mitch&#8217;s Dishes now</a>, exclusively on Skip the Dishes! Use promo code TLN15 to get $15 off when you spend $30 or more on Skip the Dishes. If Mitch likes it, it&#8217;s gotta be great! A portion of proceeds will be donated to the Marner Assist Fund to combat food insecurity. Skip is serving up game time eats to the GTA and Ontario with Mitch&#8217;s Dishes, ready for you to enjoy during tonight&#8217;s Leafs game!
<img data-recalc-dims="1" loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-91243" src="https://i0.wp.com/publish.theleafsnation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/04/IMG_6469.png?resize=300%2C167&#038;ssl=1" alt="" width="300" height="167" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/publish.theleafsnation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/04/IMG_6469.png?resize=300%2C167&amp;ssl=1 300w, https://i0.wp.com/publish.theleafsnation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/04/IMG_6469.png?resize=1024%2C568&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https://i0.wp.com/publish.theleafsnation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/04/IMG_6469.png?resize=768%2C426&amp;ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/publish.theleafsnation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/04/IMG_6469.png?resize=1536%2C852&amp;ssl=1 1536w, https://i0.wp.com/publish.theleafsnation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/04/IMG_6469.png?w=1600&amp;ssl=1 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />

We need a modernized version of the Abbott and Costello classic comedy sketch, “Who’s on First?”

“Who’s in goal for the Maple Leafs?” has a nice ring to it.

Coming off a 2-1 OT victory in Sunrise on Monday night, the Leafs will visit Tampa tonight for a tone setter ahead of the start of their first-round showdown with the Bolts next week.

Ilya Samsonov, Toronto’s projected Game 1 starter, made 45 stops against the Panthers. He was outstanding. I don’t care what the circumstances are, if I’m Sheldon Keefe, there’s no way you can play your No. 1 goalie in both ends of a back-to-back this close to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

For what it’s worth, not that it means much for tonight or next week, this one will act as the rubber match for the three-game season series between the Leafs and Lightning. Each squad has won on home ice.

Toronto’s 8-4-1 in the second game of a back-to-back this season.

&nbsp;

TIME: 7 PM ET (TSN)

&nbsp;
<h3>STARTING GOALIES:</h3>
TOR Ilya Samsonov - LIKELY (27-10-5, 2.33, 0.919, 4 SO)

@

TBL Andrei Vasilevskiy - LIKELY (32-21-4, 2.63, 0.916, 4 SO)

&nbsp;
<h3>PROJECTED LINEUPS:</h3>
Bunting-Matthews-Marner

Tavares-O'Reilly-Nylander

Knies-Acciari-Kerfoot

Aston-Reese-Kampf

&nbsp;

McCabe-Brodie

Giordano-Holl

Rielly-Liljegren

Schenn

&nbsp;

Hagel-Point-Kucherov

Stamkos-Paul-Killorn

Colton-Cirelli-Eyssimont

Maroon-Bellemare-Perry

&nbsp;

Hedman-Perbix

Sergachev-Raddysh

Cole-Cernak

&nbsp;
<h3>THREE STORYLINES: </h3>
WHO PLAYS? WHO RESTS?

With the team in a cap crunch and several players dealing with bumps and bruises, it’ll be interesting to see how Sheldon Keefe deploys his lineup. What makes things even more intriguing is tonight’s opponent. Will Keefe show Tampa anything? Does it matter? We’ll get our answers. Also, what’s the plan with Auston Matthews? He got No. 40; it’s time to rest him. I want this team as healthy as possible for Game 1.

JUST GET TO THE END

Sure, there’s a way the Leafs can use this one as a tone setter of sorts for what’s to come next week, but the most important thing undoubtedly is to find a way to escape the game with full health in fact. Again, it gets back to the whole lineup conversation. For starters, I would play Matthew Knies as much as possible. He got his feet wet last night and didn’t look out of place. Keep throwing him out there! Additionally, I wouldn’t put any of my money makers in vulnerable positions. For example, there’s no need for Mitch Marner to take reps on the penalty kill right now. Be smart. Two games left. Get there.

SET A TONE

Believe it or not, as advertised above, I think there’s a way to set a tone without paying a physically price. Personally, I just want to see the Leafs play with confidence, pace, and urgency. When they’re at their best, they come at their opposition in waves. Regardless of what Tampa’s lineup looks like tonight, it’s never early to start showing Jon Cooper and company what they’re in for. Over the past few years, both squads have played each other tough, and I don’t expect any different tonight. Good time to focus on team defence. I want to see some boring hockey.

&nbsp;
<h3><a href="https://www.betano.ca/">BETANO</a> BETTING PLAY:</h3>
Mitch Marner Assist (-143)

<a href="https://gml-grp.com/C.ashx?btag=a_24038b_2065c_&amp;affid=7966&amp;siteid=24038&amp;adid=2065&amp;c=" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://gml-grp.com/C.ashx?btag%3Da_24038b_2065c_%26affid%3D7966%26siteid%3D24038%26adid%3D2065%26c%3D&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1680711165888000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3UoxaQYQCWjYW69YYzcSZQ">Discover Betano.ca</a> - a premium Sports Betting and Online Casino experience. Offering numerous unique and dynamic betting options along with diverse digital and live casino games, Betano is where The Game Starts Now. 19+. Please play responsibly.

<img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-91264" src="https://publish.theleafsnation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/04/Betano-300x167.png" alt="" width="300" height="167" />

 
<h3>MITCH’S DISHES:</h3>
<a href="https://www.skipthedishes.com/search/Mitch%27s%20Dishes?utm_source=Game">Order Mitch's Dishes now</a>, exclusively on Skip the Dishes! Use promo code TLN15 to get $15 off when you spend $30 or more on Skip the Dishes. If Mitch likes it, it's gotta be great! A portion of proceeds will be donated to the Marner Assist Fund to combat food insecurity. Skip is serving up game time eats to the GTA and Ontario with Mitch's Dishes, ready for you to enjoy during tonight's Leafs game!

<img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-91243" src="https://publish.theleafsnation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/04/IMG_6469-300x167.png" alt="" width="300" height="167" />

Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning get together for a playoff dress rehearsal: Leafs Tailgate

Recent articles from Nick Alberga

Breaking News