Quillan was not listed on the Maple Leafs' roster page shortly after Wednesday's practice. The 23-year-old did not record a point in two games with the Maple Leafs, but was lauded by his teammates and coaches for his tenacious approach. "Q, he's got great speed. He plays both wing and centre, but he brings speed to the game," Berube said prior to a November 18 victory over the St. Louis Blues.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are set to get a huge boost on Wednesday night as they take on the Blue Jackets in Columbus. Mark Masters is reporting that captain Auston Matthews, Nic Roy, and Matthew Knies will all be back in the lineup. Matthews has been out since November 11 after taking a cheap shot from Boston Bruins defenseman Nikita Zadorov. Meanwhile, Knies had been out since November 15 after dealing with a lower-body issue for a while. Per Masters, Knies feels great.
"Knies, Matthews and Roy all practiced today," Berube said. "Looked good, they finished practice, but still gotta see about tomorrow. So that's where they're at, but it was good that they were out there and finished practice, went through all the drills."
His ceiling wasn't stratospheric, but the hope was that he could morph into a solid NHL blueliner. The Leafs gave him as many opportunities as they could. He even logged some top-pairing minutes for a short while. But he just didn't live up to expectations. At times, defensive gaffes turned into goals. Other times, he just wasn't the sort of high-end defenseman the Maple Leafs needed to contend for a Stanley Cup.
"Big two-way defenceman," Verhoeff said. "I like defending. I take pride in my defensive zone, hard on guys in the D-zone. Then getting up the ice, I'm kinda able to transition the puck pretty quickly I think. Using my size and my shot in the offensive zone to create time and space and create some passing lanes and be able to wire the puck."
A potential trade candidate emerging in recent discussions is Andrei Svechnikov. The former second-overall pick from 2018 has struggled to find his game this season, posting just 7 goals and 5 assists for 12 points in 22 contests. Elliotte Friedman reported on Hockey Night in Canada that the Carolina winger is available, and his reduced role, including a lack of top-six minutes, has only fueled the speculation. Svechnikov is currently in the fifth year of his eight-year contract, which carries a $7.75 million AAV.
Sentimental value is a luxury afforded to good teams, and the notion of meritocracy can often be a sham. Through the opening quarter and change, the Toronto Maple Leafs are several leaps away from displaying that they are a quality team, despite the collection of some of the world's best offensive talent. Although widespread changes to the roster were largely delivered, the new-look Maple Leafs that were promised to be tougher, or at least deeper in the aggregate, are governed by sentimental value and the frail ideals of seniority.
Lambert had a strong AHL rookie campaign, but it seems like frustration set in last year when that initial success didn't lead to a spot on the Jets. His numbers declined and now in his third year in North America and not being an NHL regular, Lambert is pleading for a change of scenery and depending on the price tag, the Leafs should consider being that landing spot.
Despite the Leafs having their top players, Tavares and William Nylander, who are currently the only active members of the core four, leading the team offensively, they are still in need of some scoring from the other forwards. With Auston Matthews yet to return to the lineup and Matthew Knies, who missed the last two games, they are more than in need of depth scoring.
Through 21 games, the Toronto Maple Leafs are in a drastically different position than they were a year ago. Toronto has assembled a 9-9-3 record through 21 games, sitting second-last in the Atlantic Division. At the same point last year, despite myriad injuries, the Maple Leafs were off to a 13-6-2 start, en route to capturing the first seed in the division. What a difference a year can make.
Looking to build off their win against St. Louis, the Leafs came out and played one of their best periods of the season in the opening frame. They did everything but score. The Lorentz-Laughton-Cowan line from preseason was finally reunited and got things going early when Easton Cowan drew a penalty off a nice cycle sequence. Their much-maligned power play went to work and put together a really good two minutes, but they weren't able to bury one.
Jarnkrok specified that the forecheck is the key to getting their game going in the right direction, as it starts with getting the puck cleanly out of their zone and spending more time in the opponent's end of the rink. The veteran forward will be on the top line alongside William Nylander and John Tavares, where Jarnkrok stated his goal is to work hard to get the puck to his star linemates.
Obviously, as we sit here today, we are not where we wanted to be or where we envisioned we'd be. We have underperformed to this point, and I take full responsibility. I am in charge of the hockey department. I put the people in place on the ice and off the ice. The responsibility lies with me, and we start today - and every day - to try to get ourselves back up and going to improve where we are.
With Calgary hovering near the bottom of the Western Conference standings and heading toward another retooling phase, Andersson has become one of the most discussed and coveted defencemen on the market. The Leafs reportedly attempted to acquire Andersson at last year's trade deadline but were unable to close a deal. With Calgary leaning toward a retool, the door may be opening for Toronto to finally secure his services, and the impact could be significant.
