After losing to the Ottawa Senators on Sunday in their pre-season opener, the Leafs and Senators face off again Tuesday night with the Leafs icing a much different lineup. None of the Leafs' stars are skating tonight, as the team will turn to a lineup that features Grebenkin and Cowan as well as Alex Nylander, Matthew Knies and Bobby McMann. Anthony Stolarz will sport a Maple Leafs jersey for his first taste of game action since signing his 2-year deal this summer, as he shares the crease with Dennis Hildeby.
Grebenkin impressed his teammates and head coach on Sunday in a game that saw him register four hits and a fight that got everyone fired up.
Both Grebenkin and Cowan are set to have more freedom tonight as they each lined up on power-play units during the morning skate. Cowan was on the top unit with Conor Timmins, Pontus Holmberg, Nicholas Robertson and the aforementioned Knies, while Grebenkin was lined up with Alex Steeves, Alex Nylander, Bobby McMann and Nicholas Mattinen.
Robertson, along with Holmberg, Kampf, McMann, Benoit and Timmins are the only regulars from last season that are skating tonight. The rest of the roster consists of Marlies and newer additions such as Jacob Quillan, Dakota Mermis, Philippe Myers, Roni Hirvonen and Alex Steeves.
Unlike Sunday, the Leafs ran line combinations during the morning skate and had some surprising combinations with Cowan and Grebenkin slotted on what is technically listed as the fourth line. Based on the game roster, however, it would make sense for Craig Berube to roll four lines so all the forwards should see similar ice time. In goal, the Leafs will likely use the same format they did Sunday by having Stolarz and Hildeby split the game equally, making a switch at the midway point of the second period.
POLL | ||
24 SEPTEMBRE | 761 ANSWERS Maple Leafs Announce Official Roster for Tonight's Clash with Sens: Cowan, Grebenkin in Who are you looking forward to seeing most tonight? | ||
Stolarz | 384 | 50.5 % |
Nylander | 154 | 20.2 % |
Robertson | 142 | 18.7 % |
Other | 81 | 10.6 % |
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