Berube explains intriguing Toronto Maple Leafs lineup decision
Despite missing a chance to close out their first-round series on Saturday night, the Toronto Maple Leafs are still sitting in a pretty good spot.
Up 3-1 over a provincial rival in the Ottawa Senators, the Leafs have three more chances to advance to the second round, starting with a Game 5 on Tuesday night at home.
While Mitch Marner, Auston Matthews, John Tavares, and William Nylander have all put up at least five points in the series, Toronto has been getting contributions throughout the lineup.
Fifteen skaters have registered at least one point for the team, while nine players have scored goals.
Head coach Craig Berube has tinkered with the lineup slightly — slotting in Max Pacioretty each of the last two games, and sitting Nick Robertson — but has left things mostly unchanged.
Absent from Toronto’s lineup so far have been a few playoff veterans, including Ryan Reaves, Jani Hakanpaa, and most notably, David Kampf, who has been a staple of Toronto’s playoff lineup for 25 games over the past three seasons.
Kampf put up five goals and eight assists in 59 games for Toronto this year, but missed time late in the year with an injury. He last played on April 2.
“I’ve liked our game, so I don’t see a reason to change it right now,” Berube told reporters today of Kampf per SDPN’s Jesse Blake. “He got injured at the end of the year. The team was playing well, and I didn’t want to change the lineup. It’s not a knock against him at all.”
Though Auston Matthews missed out on yesterday’s practice (with Kampf taking his spot), it appears the Leafs captain is good to go for Game 5. Here’s how the Leafs forwards line up on Tuesday:
- Matthew Knies-Auston Matthews-Mitch Marner
- Pontus Holmberg-John Tavares-William Nylander
- Max Pacioretty-Max Domi–Bobby McMann
- Steven Lorentz-Scott Laughton-Calle Jarnkrok
On the backend, Toronto returns for the fifth straight game with a lineup of:
- Jake McCabe – Chris Tanev
- Morgan Rielly – Brandon Carlo
- Simon Benoit – Oliver Ekman-Larsson
Meanwhile, Anthony Stolarz once again returns to Toronto’s net.
Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. EDT at Scotiabank Arena.
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