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The Toronto Maple Leafs are scrambling to find the right mix and a winning formula after the capper of a disastrous road trip on Sunday, blowing a 3-1 third-period lead to the Anaheim Ducks. After going 4-4-2 in October, the Leafs are hoping that things come together in November, as they return home to face the Philadelphia Flyers on Wednesday.
“It’s surprising for sure. The expectations that we had for the team are higher than what we performed at.… Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe said. “That said it’s a new month. Time to turn the page.…
When the club gathered for practice at the Ford Performance Centre on Tuesday, head coach Sheldon Keefe once again tinkered with his lineup. The top two lines remained the same, but the bottom six greeted a new member to the mix, as Pontus Holmberg was called up from the AHL Marlies to center the third line between fellow Swedes Pierre Engvall and Calle Jarnkrok, and Zach Aston-Reese lined up with David Kampf and Denis Malgin.
Holmberg, 23, replaced Wayne Simmonds, (who was sent down to the Marlies) had an excellent training camp after a 41-point season in the SHL last year and had two assists in seven AHL games this season. The Leafs are looking for someone to fill the void up the middle with Alex Kerfoot shifting to the wing on the second line.
Defensively, the top tandem of Morgan Rielly and TJ Brodie was split up, with Brodie alongside Justin Holl, Rielly with Victor Mete, and Mark Giordano with Rasmus Sandin.
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Not surprisingly, the Toronto Maple Leafs have been ranked as the NHL’s most valuable franchise. The sports business website Sportico indicated that the Leafs and NY Rangers are valued at over $2 billion, with Toronto at $2.12 billion and New York at $2.01 billion.
Per @Sportico, the #Leafs are most valuable NHL franchise at $2.12 Billion. pic.twitter.com/3THURHrzpD
— Michael Augello (@MikeInBuffalo) November 1, 2022
The report indicates that NHL teams generated $6.1 billion in revenue during the 2021-22 season, nearly three times the prior-year revenue when COVID-19 restrictions wrecked team finances for a league that is heavily gate-dependent. That is the likely reason that the NHL hinted at their last Board of Governors meeting that the escrow deficit the league incurred the last two seasons will be paid off this season and that the salary cap could go up more than the scheduled $1 million for 2023-24.
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