Leafs about to get a pretty substantial upgrade on defense
The Toronto Maple Leafs are set to face off against the Philadelphia Flyers at home on Wednesday night. The slumping Leafs are coming into the game 4-4-2, while the Flyers are off to a surprisingly strong start at 5-2-2. While there are several key areas the Leafs need to improve upon, arguably the largest is defense, as they have been plastered with injuries to key blueliners and players such as Morgan Rielly and Justin Holl have had lackluster starts. Luckily for the Leafs, they are about to get a boost on the back-end, as head coach Sheldon Keefe has confirmed Timothy Liljegren will return Saturday to play the big, bad Bruins.
Liljegren has yet to play an NHL game this season, as he required sports hernia surgery in September, forcing him to miss game action for at least six weeks. The Swedish defenseman had an impressive year last year, playing 61 games, putting up 5 goals and 23 points and showing tremendous growth in his two-way game. His play was especially strong after the Leafs acquired Mark Giordano at last year's trade deadline. The two formed a great pair and Liljegren seemed to excel in all areas with Gio as his partner.
Keefe has not confirmed what the pairs will be, but it won't be surprising if Gio and Liljegren are reunited. It also wouldn't be surprising if Liljegren plays higher in the lineup, given the horrendous play of Justin Holl this season. Either way, the Buds are hoping for a big year of growth out of Liljegren, and hopefully he can help turn the ship around and get things back on track.
| POLL | ||
NOVEMBRE 2 | 265 ANSWERS Leafs about to get a pretty substantial upgrade on defense Will Timothy Liljegren play a top-4 role for the Leafs this season? | ||
| Yes | 179 | 67.5 % |
| No | 58 | 21.9 % |
| He'll be on the top pair by the end of the year | 28 | 10.6 % |
| List of polls | ||
