Nick Robertson is not the only player making his season debut with the Leafs tonight
After 4 straight losses to the Predators, Kings, Bruins and Sabres, the Leafs are in desperate need of a win tonight against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Unfortunately, they'll have to do it without several key players. Jake McCabe's groin injury will hold him out of the lineup yet again, and Timothy Liljegren will be out for some time with a high ankle sprain. Connor Timmins, who looked fantastic before the regular season started, is not quite ready for a return from the lower body injury he suffered in the last game of the pre season.
The Leafs will have to rely on several Marlies call-ups to step in and fill the void. William Lagesson remains in the lineup after being called up to replace Jake McCabe, but Max Lajoie, who came up to replace Liljegren, appears to be a healthy scratch. Nick Robertson will make his season debut for the Leafs in place of Pontus Holmberg, but he's not the only one wearing the Maple Leaf for the first time this season in tonight's game.
Simon Benoit skated on the third pairing at practice yesterday, and left morning skate without staying for extra work, signaling that he would be in the lineup. This will mark the former Ducks defender's first regular season game as a Leaf. If Benoit wants to solidify his spot, he'll need to keep the physicality he likes to play with, but avoid the bad penalties that plagued him in the pre season.
As of right now, this is what the D pairings are likely to look like:
Rielly-Brodie
Giordano-Klingberg
Lagesson-Benoit
I would expect Keefe to change things up very quickly if it appears that the third pairing is struggling at all.
| POLL | ||
NOVEMBRE 6 | 325 ANSWERS Nick Robertson is not the only player making his season debut with the Leafs tonight Should Connor Timmins take over John Klingberg's roster spot when he returns? | ||
| Yes! He had a fantastic pre season | 216 | 66.5 % |
| No, he should be with the Marlies | 31 | 9.5 % |
| They need to trade for a more defensive D-man | 78 | 24 % |
| List of polls | ||
