There’s a clear opening on the Toronto Maple Leafs’ first line and now it’s a matter of seizing the opportunity. Matias Maccelli appears to be the favourite to emerge as the right wing on a line featuring Matthew Knies and Auston Matthews. Maccelli is a left-handed playmaker, comfortable playing on either side of the ice, and his game ought to naturally translate well among Toronto’s stars.

Max Domi was also in contention for the first-line spot, but he’s considered day-to-day with a lower-body injury. As a result, Maccelli will almost certainly line up alongside Knies and Matthews at Thursday’s on-ice session, while John Tavares and William Nylander could see a host of potential linemates including Dakota Joshua, Easton Cowan, Bobby McMann or Nick Robertson.

“Max will not be able to hit the ice there tomorrow,” Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube said Wednesday. “It certainly impacts him a little bit, but I don’t think he’ll be too long. He’ll be back out there. He’s definitely one of the guys that we consider getting a look there and see what we can do.”

“Obviously, we’re looking at Matthews and Knies, they formed some real chemistry last year. With a guy like Mitch (Marner) out of the lineup, we’re looking for someone who can make some plays and guys who can pass the puck, a little give-and-go with Matthews and Knies. Maccelli is a good playmaker, we know that, and we’ve seen that. And obviously Max is one of those guys, too. But again, we’ll see how it looks and how it goes. It might not be those guys if it doesn’t work.”

Berube played Knies-Matthews-Domi together for 43:06 together at 5-on-5 last season via Natural Stat Trick. In this limited sample, the line combined for three actual goals, one goal against, and a 72.6 percent share of the expected goals. That’s pretty damn good, but there needs to be a larger sampling before it can become predictive of future outcomes.

“Well, I guess right now in my head, I look at Domi and Maccelli are two guys that… They’re great passers, right? They can pass the puck and make plays,” Berube said. “I think that’s what that line needs. You got to make a play. That’s what I’m looking at right now. But will it work? I don’t know. I got to see it. It takes a little time to form chemistry and things like that.”

“Max does have some chemistry with Auston, obviously. They played together at different points in the last couple of years. But those two guys pop up ahead right now that I want to look at with Matthews and Knies.”

It’s clear that Domi’s optimal fit is on the wing, rather than centre, but does that create an optimal look for the Leafs? It depends on which version of Maccelli the Maple Leafs receive. Two years ago, Maccelli recorded 17 goals and 57 points in 82 games, but his production fell off a cliff with Utah, where he posted eight goals and 18 points in 55 contests. Toronto made a reasonable bet that the truer version of Maccelli is the player he was in 2023-24, and he has superior puck skills than Domi as well. It’s also worth noting that Maccelli is a better defensive player than Domi, and while he’ll be tasked with creating dangerous chances for Knies and Matthews, it’s another element that works in his favour.

And if Maccelli doesn’t work out on the first line, Berube can always go back to Domi — or Robertson, Joshua, Cowan, or McMann. The early portion of the year is meant to experiment and test out line combinations, before finding your optimal group in March and finalizing some groupings before the playoffs begin. Maccelli appears to be the best stylistic fit and though Domi should be back for the season opener, the door has opened for the new Maple Leafs winger to prove why he’s the candidate to replace Mitch Marner on the top line.