Sitting at a 1-1-0 record, the Leafs are looking to add another win to that record as they take on the Senators tonight at Scotiabank Arena. Although the Senators’ lineup hasn’t been a playoff team for the past few years, they have always played good hockey against the Leafs. Ottawa made some upgrades this past offseason as they added Giroux, Debrincat, and Talbot. Tonight the stage is set for the battle of Ontario, which will surely be a great game.
Leafs Projected Lineup
Forwards
Bunting – Matthews – Marner
Nylander – Tavares – Malgin
Engvall – Kerfoot – Järnkrok
Aston-Reese – Kämpf – Aubé-Kubel
Defense
Rielly – Brodie
Muzzin – Holl
Giordano – Sandin
Goalies
Samsonov
Kallgren
Senators’ Projected Lineup
Forwards
Tkachuk – Stützle – Batherson
Debrincat – Norris – Giroux
Motte – Pinto – Joseph
Kelly – Kastelic – Watson
Defense
Chabot – Zub
Sanderson – Hamonic
Brannstrom – Holden
Goalies
Forsberg
Hellberg
3 Things to Look Out For
1. Matt Murray’s health
Roughly 10 minutes into the Leafs’ morning skate today, Murray left, feeling discomfort in his groin. He was the projected starter for tonight’s match as Keefe looked to start alternating games between his two goalies. Keefe claims Murray to be a game-time decision, and no decision has been released at the time of writing this. There are three scenarios for Toronto tonight based on Murray’s health situation, which are outlined in the tweets below:
2. John Tavares looks to stay hot
After last season, many people started debating whether Tavares was on the decline and expressed concern about how he could look this season. After a full summer of training, rather than dealing with recovering from a concussion like the previous summer, Tavares has played with more speed and looked much better than he had last year. Keep an eye on Tavares tonight as he looks to continue building off of a solid start to the season.
3. Pierre Engvall
A player you should watch out for tonight is Pierre Engvall. Playing on the third line with Kerfoot and Järnkrok, Engvall has been given a lot of defensive assignments. Engvall has looked solid in the defensive zone and had bursts of speed but hasn’t shown much success in the offensive zone. Look for him to put up another solid defensive game while using his speed to try and convert on offensive chances.
The first Hockey Night in Canada begins tonight at 7:00 pm EST on CBC!
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