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The Toronto Maple Leafs will take on the Tampa Bay Lightning for the first time this season at Scotiabank Arena on Monday in the first of back-to-back games, and will be making a lineup tweak after getting stumped by Igor Shesterkin in a 4-1 loss to the NY Rangers on Saturday.
The Leafs will sit Ryan Reaves in favor of veteran Max Pacioretty after the enforcer played for just 8:36 in Saturday’s contest. While his start of the season has not been as disastrous as last year’s, if the 37-year-old does not drop the gloves, his presence does not serve any purpose. Toronto has struggled offensively so far this season, getting stymied by Shesterkin and Samuel Montembeault.
The salaries of Calle Jarnkrok, Jani Hakanpaa and Connor Dewar on LTIR total $4.75 million and when they are ready to return, GM Brad Treliving will have to open up three spots on the roster and the corresponding room under the cap to activate them. A trade involving defenseman Timothy Liljegren would clear $3 million of the space needed, but the club would have to free up another $1.75 million.
Reaves is signed for this and next year and that is a deal that no one in the NHL will claim. Sending him down to the AHL Marlies would clear most of his $1.35 million cap hit, while a younger player like Nick Robertson or Conor Timmins would almost certainly be claimed.
This may be academic at this point since the most recent reports are that Jarnkrok is not close to returning and that Dewar and Hakanpaa are not expected to be available until next month, but when the time comes, there should be no hesitation by Treliving in making this move.
Anthony Stolarz will be making the start for Toronto, with Andrei Vasilevskiy going for Tampa Bay.
Toronto Maple Leafs Blogger • 
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