Nick Abruzzese may debut with the Leafs this week
Well, that didn't take long. On Thursday, Nick Abruzzese was eliminated from the NCAA playoffs. Friday it was reported he signed a 2-year deal with the Leafs, which was confirmed on Saturday. On Sunday, Sheldon Keefe confirmed that Abruzzese will be meeting the Leafs in Boston on their upcoming road trip.
While we likely won't see him in the lineup when the Leafs take on Boston, it should not be long after he joins the team that he makes his debut. Of course, things could change if the Leafs stumble over their next few games, but the Leafs would like to give him a few practices to learn their systems and get up to speed with his teammates and line mates before throwing him to the wolves.
He could start on the fourth line, but it would not be surprising to see Keefe insert the Harvard captain directly on the second line alongside Leafs captain John Tavares to get him going, as nothing has seemed to work for more than a game lately with Tavares and Nylander.
It will be interesting to see just how fast the Leafs introduce him to the NHL. Do they limit him to 4th line minutes or give him top-6 minutes right away? I would venture to guess that they'll manage his minutes regardless of how they choose to deploy him.
| POLL | ||
MARS 27 | 174 ANSWERS Nick Abruzzese may debut with the Leafs this week Will the Leafs get Abruzzese into a game with the big club this week? | ||
| No | 29 | 16.7 % |
| Yes | 111 | 63.8 % |
| Just wait until he's ready | 34 | 19.5 % |
| List of polls | ||
