Here's what the Leafs lines may look like after latest moves
While there haven’t been any wholesale changes like some predicted this offseason, the Toronto Maple Leafs have remained active in tinkering around the edges of the team.
On Tuesday, the Leafs landed a one-year deal with Nick Robertson, while multiple reports also surfaced that the team is bringing in veteran winger Max Pacioretty on a PTO, with the expectation that he’ll be joining the roster should all go well in preseason. And while it was reported by Frank Seravalli that the franchise is still scanning the trade market for Robertson, we can only project that, for the time being, he’ll be with the Leafs once they get their season going on October 9.
With a little bit of wiggle room based on how the team decides to dress their 23 skaters and goalies, here’s what we think the lineup may look like once the games count for real.
Projected Leafs lines
Forwards
- William Nylander-Auston Matthews-Easton Cowan
- Matthew Knies- John Tavares- Mitchell Marner
- Max Pacioretty-Max Domi-David Kämpf
- Bobby McMann-Calle Järnkrok-Nick Robertson
- Extra forwards: Ryan Reaves/Pontus Holmberg
There might be some finagling for the final few roster spots, but the Leafs likely have a pretty clear top-six bottom-six split. It’s also unclear if Easton Cowan cracks the final roster, but after an impressive year with the London Knights, it seems viable for the Leafs to give him a shot to start the year.
Defencemen
- Morgan Rielly- Christopher Tanev
- Oliver Ekman-Larsson-Timothy Liljegren
- Jake McCabe- Jani Hakanpaa
- Extra defencemen: Conor Timmins/Simon Benoît
The Leafs have four new faces on defence in their projected top eight for next season, while Morgan Rielly, Timothy Liljegren, Jake McCabe, Connor Timmins, and Simon Benoit are all expected back.
Projected Leafs goalies
- Joseph Woll
- Anthony Stolarz
- Matt Murray
No real surprises here, as the Leafs could look to keep all three goalies at the NHL level to begin the season.