LGP 23: Leafs Face Soaring Penguins

Liljegren and Kallgren hug after win Photo: Toronto Maple Leafs

Leafs face off against the Penguins tonight as they look to continue their strong November. The Penguins have won five games in a row, with their last loss being against the Leafs. The Leafs will look to put the Penguins back in the loss category as Marner extends his point streak to 16 games, Källgren looks to recover from a tough end against the Islanders, and the team continues to battle through their injuries.

Leafs Projected Lineup

Forwards

Bunting – Matthews – Nylander

Järnkrok – Tavares – Marner

Kerfoot- Holmberg – Malgin

Aston-Reese – Kämpf – Engvall

Defense

Giordano – Holl

Sandin – Liljegren

Mete – Hollowell

Goalies

Källgren

Murray

Penguins Projected Lineup

Forwards

Guentzel – Crosby – Rakell

Zucker – Malkin – Rust

McGinn – Carter – Heinen

Poehling – Blueger – Archibald

Defense

Pettersson – Letang

Joseph – Petry

Dumoulin – Rutta

Goalies

DeSmith

Jarry

Three Things to Look Out For

Malgin

Malgin found himself a healthy scratch the past two games and is drawing back into the lineup with Simmonds being scratched. Malgin will look to play a consistent game tonight and help contribute to the Leafs’ success in hopes of staying in the lineup. With Holmberg getting an extended look as the third-line center, one roster slot has been fought for between Malgin, Robertson, and Simmonds. Malgin is back in tonight, hoping to prove why he thinks the roster slot should belong to him.

Holl

We have heard quite a bit about the Leafs’ injuries on defense so far, and many have acknowledged the increased role Giordano has had to play, especially doing that well at his age. Well, I think it’s time we give Holl some credit. While Holl has had some shaky moments this season, he has been relied on for over 22 minutes in each of the Leafs’ last four games. He hasn’t been on the ice during this time for a single 5-on-5 goal. Holl will look to extend that stat with tonight’s game.

Järnkrok

Well, I said in the last pregame writeup that I think Järnkrok is a good stylistic fit with Marner and Tavares, and after one game, he passed the eye test. It looks like he will be back on the same line again tonight, so we will get an extended look to see if the fit indeed does work. Look for this second line to be hard-working, capitalizing on the other teams’ mistakes.

You can watch today’s game live at 7:00 pm EST on Sportsnet or CBC!

Thanks for reading! Feel free to follow me on Twitter @nathan_bondy.

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