For the latest Leafs updates or Follow @mikeinbuffalo on Twitter The Toronto Maple Leafs return to Scotiabank Arena after two weeks on the road and face the Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals in the first of a four-game homestand on Thursday. The Leafs went 3-2-1 on their six-game road swing and are hoping to keep pace with the red-hot Boston Bruins, who pulled four points ahead of Toronto with their seventh straight win in Vegas on Wednesday. Nazem Kadri was not on the ice Thursday morning after suffering a concussion on Tuesday and head coach Mike Babcock did not elaborate on the center’s status, other than to say that he would not play against the Caps. William Nylander replaced Kadri at center on the third line between Andreas Johnsson and Connor Brown and Tyler Ennis took Brown’s place on the right side with Par Lindholm and Frederik Gauthier.
Outdoor Practice.
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) February 21, 2019
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Kreider is second to Mika Zibanejad in scoring with 44 points (24 goals, 20 assists) and has another year at $4.625 Million, which would seem not to fit with Toronto’s salary cap situation next season unless they would be moving out an equivalent cap hit and their need to bolster the blueline instead of adding another top nine forward. Brooks also indicated that pending free-agent defenseman Adam McQuaid has drawn interest from Toronto, Boston, the NY Islanders and Tampa Bay, and while the Rangers could get a pick for the veteran defenseman, they may have interest in helping out the Lightning, with New York getting their first round pick if Tampa wins the Cup this season. *******
They got the point! So what’s the point? New Leafs Convo now wherever you get your podcasts. #TMLTalk #LeafsForever #HockeyTwitter #TheLeafsConvo @MikeInBuffalo @TheLeafsConvo https://t.co/xXmkCf5JvN pic.twitter.com/xbnJwIlRYz
— Norman James (@NormanJamesTLC) February 20, 2019