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The Toronto Maple Leafs put forth another solid effort in a 3-0 victory over the Montreal Canadiens at Scotiabank Arena on Wednesday, shutting out their historic rival for the second straight game with a lineup that closely resembled what will be starting the regular season next week against the Ottawa Senators.
Trevor Moore, John Tavares and Auston Matthews scored for Toronto, Mitch Marner added a pair of assists, Frederik Andersen made 26 saves, and decisions on line combinations and the battle for roster spots may have become clearer for head coach Mike Babcock.
“When you get together and you’re trying to figure out your team, you need guys to play hard so you can evaluate what you have.… Babcock said. “I know for myself managing the bench, I lost a couple guys a few times. You are not used to them being here.…
The Leafs top two lines appear to be set until the return of Zach Hyman, with Matthews centering Andreas Johnsson and William Nylander and Tavares between Kasperi Kapanen and Marner. The combo of Ilya Mikheyev and Alex Kerfoot are locks for the third line, and Moore after a two-point night will slot in on either the third or fourth line.
The only area of uncertainty up front is the make up of the fourth line. Jason Spezza and Frederik Gauthier played with rookie Dmytro Timashov, and while the two centers are near certainties, the young winger played sparingly (7:35) on the night, which could mean that spot on the roster is still up for grabs as the Leafs enter the final weekend of the exhibition schedule.
Defensively, the focus was squarely on the bottom pairing of Rasmus Sandin and Martin Marincin. The 2018 first round pick had another steady and calm performance, assisted on Moore’s goal and registering four shots on goal in just under 11 minutes, which continues to make the case for the 19-year-old to break camp with the Leafs.
“(Sandin) moves the puck real good, he gets his (shot) through from the blueline. He’s got intelligence (and) he’s just seems to have a feel for the game.… Babcock said. “You don’t think of him as a kid, because he does not make jittery mistakes. He just seems to be out there playing.…
With Travis Dermott expected to be out for the first month of the season, and the bulk of the blueline additions not making much of an impression, Marincin will likely make the club by default, since Babcock is comfortable with him and can use him on the penalty kill, but that could change rather quickly if the lanky Slovak repeats the defensive giveaways that have long been a constant in his game.
Mo âž¡ï¸ Marner âž¡ï¸ Matthews = 🔥#LeafsForever pic.twitter.com/Wu8tfhUbH7
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) September 26, 2019
The Leafs demoted goalie Kasimir Kaskisuo to the Toronto Marlies on Thursday, but with back-to-back games against Detroit at Little Caesar’s Arena on Friday and Scotiabank Arena on Saturday, GM Kyle Dubas is not expected to make his big roster cutdown until Sunday. *******