Sheldon Keefe gives his thoughts on the NHL debut of Semyon Der-Arguchintsev and the Leafs debut of Conor Timmins
Last night, during the Leafs 4-0 win over the Dallas Stars, a couple Leafs in Semyon Der-Arguchintsev and Conor Timmins made their Leafs debuts. In SDA's case, it was also his NHL debut.
Post-game, Keefe admitted it was a hard game to evaluate either of them. This is because they had long stretches during the game in which they didn't see the ice, largely due to Toronto serving seven minor penalties.
Tough games to really evaluate them in. There were long stretches between their shifts.
I thought Timmins, in particular, got better as the game wore on and the more reps he got. He is a very smart guy with the puck. I thought he moved it very efficiently. He made a real good defensive play in the third period where Benn was coming in with a ton of speed and he got in the way and slowed him up. That was really good to see. I am happy with his performance.
With SDA, I liked the defensive play on his first shift protecting the net and breaking up a play. Aside from that, there wasn't a whole lot happening. Tough day to play your first NHL game where you are sitting for long periods of time watching special teams.
-Sheldon Keefe on Semyon Der-Arguchintsev and Conor Timmins' making their Leafs debuts
Conor Timmins was acquired by the Maple Leafs a couple weeks ago from the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for forward Curtis Douglas. He was originally drafted in the second round by the Colorado Avalanche (32nd overall) in the 2017 NHL entry draft. In part, due to injury, he has not been able to grab a consistent spot in the NHL.
As for Der-Arguchintsev, he has been in the Leafs system since being drafted in the third round (76th overall) in the 2018 NHL entry draft. The now 22-year-old spent four seasons with the Peterborough Petes in Junior before graduating to the Toronto Marlies. So far this season with the Marlies, he has posted 18 points in 20 games.
Given that Keefe found their games hard to assess, it will be interesting to see if these two get another look Thursday when the Los Angeles Kings are in town. Keefe's full quote on the subject is available below.
I thought Timmins, in particular, got better as the game wore on and the more reps he got. He is a very smart guy with the puck. I thought he moved it very efficiently. He made a real good defensive play in the third period where Benn was coming in with a ton of speed and he got in the way and slowed him up. That was really good to see. I am happy with his performance.
With SDA, I liked the defensive play on his first shift protecting the net and breaking up a play. Aside from that, there wasn't a whole lot happening. Tough day to play your first NHL game where you are sitting for long periods of time watching special teams.
-Sheldon Keefe on Semyon Der-Arguchintsev and Conor Timmins' making their Leafs debuts
Conor Timmins was acquired by the Maple Leafs a couple weeks ago from the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for forward Curtis Douglas. He was originally drafted in the second round by the Colorado Avalanche (32nd overall) in the 2017 NHL entry draft. In part, due to injury, he has not been able to grab a consistent spot in the NHL.
As for Der-Arguchintsev, he has been in the Leafs system since being drafted in the third round (76th overall) in the 2018 NHL entry draft. The now 22-year-old spent four seasons with the Peterborough Petes in Junior before graduating to the Toronto Marlies. So far this season with the Marlies, he has posted 18 points in 20 games.
Given that Keefe found their games hard to assess, it will be interesting to see if these two get another look Thursday when the Los Angeles Kings are in town. Keefe's full quote on the subject is available below.
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 7 | 187 ANSWERS Sheldon Keefe gives his thoughts on the NHL debut of Semyon Der-Arguchintsev and the Leafs debut of Conor Timmins Did you like what you saw from Timmins and Der-Arguchintsev last night? | ||
| Yes | 114 | 61 % |
| No | 21 | 11.2 % |
| SDA yes, Timmins no | 2 | 1.1 % |
| Timmins yes, SDA no | 50 | 26.7 % |
| List of polls | ||
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