Leafs make several lineup changes ahead of tonight's game
After playing on the second half of the back-to-back against the Florida Panthers on Tuesday, Kyle Clifford and Jason Spezza skated onto the ice for the morning skate on Thursday in grey jerseys, meaning they will be scratched for tonight's game against Dallas.
This means that Wayne Simmonds will be able to continue to build on what has been a solid stretch for him since being re-inserted into the lineup. This also means that rookie Nick Abruzzese will draw back into the lineup as well after watching the last game from the press box. Colin Blackwell will line up at center between them.
It would appear as though Leafs bench boss Sheldon Keefe was not pleased with Clifford's slash early in the third that led to a Huberdeau power play goal. Had Clifford shown a little more restraint, perhaps the Leafs would have come out of the Sunshine State with 4 out of 4 points, rather than the 3 that they banked.
On the back end, rookie defenseman Timothy Liljegren appears to be the odd man out for tonight's game as Ilya Lyubushkin draws back in next to Rielly. T.J. Brodie slides down to play with Jake Muzzin, while Mark Giordano lines up with Justin Holl, who many believe should be sitting after a disastrous game against the Panthers.
Shockingly, Keefe has decided to break up the Gio-Liljegren pairing that has been excellent since Giordano's arrival. If there's one guy that should come out, it's Holl, not Lily. The 22-year-old Swede has done everything that's been asked of him and, in large, he's looked like a veteran blueliner out there.
| POLL | ||
AVRIL 7 | 281 ANSWERS Leafs make several lineup changes ahead of tonight's game How many games will it take before the Leafs lock in their pairings for the playoffs? | ||
| 3-5 more games | 81 | 28.8 % |
| 6-8 more games | 76 | 27 % |
| 9+ more games | 47 | 16.7 % |
| Keefe will keep rotating through the playoffs | 77 | 27.4 % |
| List of polls | ||
