The Toronto Maple Leafs were swept in a pair of split squad exhibition contests by the division rival Ottawa Senators on Wednesday.
At the Canadian Tire Center in Kanata, ON, Toronto lost 3-2 in regulation against an Ottawa squad made up of mostly of NHL regulars. Sam Carrick and Morgan Rielly tallied for Toronto, while Bobby Ryan scored twice(including the winning goal at 4:19 of the third period) and rookie Matt Puempel also tallied for the Sens.
In Toronto, the Leafs led by a pair of goals on two separate occasions, but lost 4-3 in a shootout on a goal by Milan Michalek.
Nazem Kadri, Jake Gardiner and James van Riemsdyk tallied for the Leafs and James Reimer stopped all 18 shots before being relieved by Marlies goalie Christopher Gibson.
The similarity in both contests was Toronto being outshot by a significant margin, as they were on most nights last season. Rookie Antoine Bibeau, tryout invite Cal Heeter, Reimer and Gibson faced a combined 70 Ottawa shots in the two games, while the Leafs registered only 49 shots on Craig Anderson and Robin Lehner.
Another concern for Toronto has to be bad defensive decisions that resulted in all three of Ottawa's goals. Rookie William Nylander's giveaway at the Ottawa blueline and the flat-footedness of Leafs defenseman Stuart Percy resulted in Shane Prince's second period goal, an ill-advised Cody Franson pass on the power play flubbed by Jake Gardiner led to Alex Chiasson's shorthanded breakaway goal that narrowed the lead to 3-2 and Nazem Kadri's lazy backhand clearing attempt was intercepted and converted by rookie Ryan Dzingel to tie the game.
The Leafs will play next in Buffalo against the Sabres on Friday.
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Maple Leafs management will get a look at most of the 54 players on their training camp roster in game action, as the Ottawa Senators and Toronto play in simultaneous split squad games at Air Canada Center and at the Canadian Tire Center in Kanata, ON on Wednesday night.
The Blue and White are 2-0 in the preseason after a 4-0 victory over Philadelphia at ACC on Tuesday. Jonathan Bernier and rookie Antoine Bibeau shared the shutout and James van Riemsdyk, Brandon Kozun, Cody Franson and 2014 top pick William Nylander tallied for Toronto.
While Leafs management is in full evaluation mode with a number of players, most eyes were glued on the 18-year-old prospect and how he performed in a top line role with Phil Kessel and Mike Santorelli. The youngster appeared tentative early in the game, overhandling the puck and overthinking, but began to loosen up after creating a couple scoring chances on a Toronto power play in the second period.
"I think he was an energetic, nervous young hockey player." Leafs head coach Randy Carlyle said after the game. "There's nobody who can dispute the skill set that he possesses....it separates him from other players, when you notice the way he carries the puck and the confidence that he has on the ice surface, but again there's some things we'd like to see him change."
The club is going to give the talented youngster a long look and opportunity to make the NHL this season, but Leafs GM Dave Nonis is skeptical that Nylander is ready for the challenge.
“William’s a lot quicker than most of his peers, but he’s not when he steps on an NHL sheet.… Nonis said to FAN 590’s Bob McCown on Tuesday. “I think we’ll be able to tell after four or five exhibition games whether this is a situation that’s good for him. We’re not in the position to bring him in to play eight minutes a night or sit out every second game.…
The Leafs coaching staff and management recognize that Nylander has the skill and confidence to play in the NHL, but have to be convinced that the eighth overall pick can withstand the physical pounding of an 82-game season.
“If he can come in and make a meaningful impact on our team, then it would be great to have him.… Nonis said.
#Leafs v #Sens Game Day! In Tor. (7:30p TSN4, @TSN1050Radio). In Ott. (7:30p TSN5 Ott. Region) #TMLtalk pic.twitter.com/eqmK8nLPS8
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) September 24, 2014The talent split of Toronto’s squad for the two contests is heavily tilted towards the lineup playing at the ACC. David Booth, Matt Frattin, Peter Holland, Colton Orr, Daniel Winnik, Morgan Rielly and tryout invitee Henrik Tallinder are the only players seriously in the mix for a spot with the Leafs playing in Kanata.
Tuesday's Best
Brandon Kozun – May not have the size to make it in the NHL, but opened eyes last night with his speed and effort on a shorthanded goal.
Jonathan Bernier - 12 shots in just over 30 minutes. Controlled rebounds and appeared confident. If the Leafs can improve their overall defensive game, it will be a big year for Bernier.
Henrik Tallinder - Looked solid playing with rookie Viktor Loov on Tuesday, the 35-year-old was effective clearing the front of the net and staying in the correct position while killing penalties.
Leo Komarov – A tenacious pain in the ass. Komarov works hard, gets under the skin of the opposition and loves doing it.
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Injured forwards David Clarkson and Tyler Bozak participated in the morning skate on Wednesday and may be back in the lineup for Friday's exhibition game in Buffalo.
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Listen to myself and Russ Cohen from NHL Network Radio on “Off The Post… discussing the Leafs and the Atlantic Division:
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