The Toronto Marlies began the final weekend of their 2015-16 regular season with a 3-1 victory over the Rochester Americans at Ricoh Coliseum on Saturday, but have to wait until the final day of the campaign to find out who they will face in the opening round of the Calder Cup Playoffs.
The Marlies with an AHL-best 53-16-5 record will play either Portland, Bridgeport or Utica later this week, but could start on the road if they match up against the East Coast based Pirates or Sound Tigers.
If the Comets(AHL affiliate of the Vancouver Canucks) are the first round match, the club will play Game 1 & 2 at home, Game 3 & 4(if necessary) in Utica and a deciding Game 5 at Ricoh Coliseum.
Marlies defenseman TJ Brennan and goaltender Antoine Bibeau keeping their eye on the puck in the second period of a 3-1 victory over Rochester on Saturday.
Image courtesy of Christian Bonin at TSGPhoto
While Sheldon Keefe waits to find out who the opposition will be, the Marlies rookie head coach also has a problem that most coaches would love to have; choosing who of their deep and talent-laden roster will play and who will sit.
“We’re going to dress the 20 guys who we think will give us the best chance to win Game 1.… Keefe said on Saturday. “We like our depth. Unlike other teams, our depth exceeds the number of roster spots available for any particular game and we’ve got to make decisions there.…
Keefe did not reveal if Antoine Bibeau or Garret Sparks will be in goal when the playoffs begin. Bibeau registered his 28th win of the season on Saturday, but has struggled to main a high level of performance in his sophomore AHL season.
"Sparks is gonna get in (on Sunday).He's had a good, hard week of practice and getting recalibrated here at the AHL level," Keefe said about Sparks, who leads the Marlies with a team-best .925 save percentage and 2.34 GAA.. "With where (Bibeau) is at, I feel really good. I've never lost sight of the fact that Garret Sparks when he was in American Hockey League at one point this season to me was the best goaltender I had seen in the league."
Former Sharks goalie Alex Stalock(acquired in the deal that sent James Reimer to San Jose) was excused from the club with Sparks, Bibeau and NCAA product Kasimir Kaskisuo available between the pipes.
Marlies starting lineup today at the Ricoh. pic.twitter.com/ZyhBzMIuuF
— Leafs Hub (@LeafsHub) April 16, 2016
The defensive corps on Saturday included four of the six blueliners who should start the playoffs in Viktor Loov, Andrew Campbell, Rinat Valiev and TJ Brennan(named the winner of the Eddie Shore Award for the second time in three years). Stuart Percy and Connor Carrick are expected to be the other starters, with AHL veterans Justin Holl and David Kolomatis as reserves.
Where Keefe will have a most difficult decision is up front, where the Marlies have a number of options. The lineup against the Amerks was minus William Nylander, Josh Leivo and Zach Hyman, who will all be integral parts of their bid for a Calder Cup.
Will the Marlies go with a more experienced lineup that includes veterans Richard Clune, Ben Smith and Matt Frattin or will they opt to play rookies Kasperi Kapanen, Tobias Lindberg and 22-year-old Colin Smith, who has 22 points since being acquired in the Shawn Matthias deal in late February.
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