Editor In Leaf
Fansided

Toronto Maple Leafs: Freddie Will Play and Subban Returns Home

By Josh Tessler

TORONTO, ON - NOVEMBER 15: P.K. Subban
TORONTO, ON - NOVEMBER 15: P.K. Subban /
facebooktwitterreddit

According to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet, Frederik Andersen will start in net tonight for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

After a scare the other night against the Anaheim Ducks, Andersen is healthy and will play in net tonight for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Andersen practiced yesterday alongside Curtis McElhinney and goalie coach, Steve Briere.

After the Toronto Maple Leafs practice yesterday, Andersen told the media that he wasn’t concussed after the collision with Corey Perry. He did suffer from some jaw pain, but all-in-all he was feeling ok.

PK Returns Home

P.K. Subban of the Nashville Predators returns home to Toronto as the Predators take on the Toronto Maple Leafs at the Air Canada Centre.

Subban, a Toronto native, grew in the Rexdale neighborhood of Toronto. Oddly enough, Subban grew up as a Montreal Canadiens fan.. In an interview on Tout Le Monde en Parle, Subban explained that he grew up a Canadiens fan. When his father Karl moved to Canada, he lived in a franco-phone neighborhood. In the neighborhood, all of Karl’s neighbors lived and breathed Canadiens hockey. So, it rubbed off on Karl. When Karl had P.K., they used to watch Canadiens hockey together and P.K. grew a love for Montreal hockey.

Fortunately for P.K., he was drafted by the Montreal Canadiens in the second round of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft. Subban had many successful seasons at the Bell Centre. Unfortunately for Subban, his time in Montreal ended in June of 2016 after rumors of a falling out between Subban and Canadiens’ owners, the Molson Family. He was sent to the Predators in a controversial trade.

PK and the Predators

Since joining the Predators, Subban has became the face of the franchise. Last year, he helped the Predators alongside teammates, Filip Forsberg, Roman Josi and Pekka Rinne reach the Stanley Cup Finals. As most of you know, the Predators couldn’t defeat the Pittsburgh Penguins as Sidney Crosby and Evgeny Malkin had their number.

This season, Subban is having one of his best campaigns of his career. Currently, he has 13 goals and 28 assists in 51 games. He’ll likely be a favorite to bring home the Norris at the end of the year for his strong offensive play.

More from Editor In Leaf

The Predators have stockpiled a lot of strong defensive assets alongside Subban. Josi and Mattias Ekholm have been extremely pivotal to the Predators’ success and will make for competition for the Toronto Maple Leafs’ top lines.

Preds’ Notes

If you were looking forward to seeing Forsberg play tonight, unfortunately you won’t have the opportunity to do so. Forsberg received a three game suspension from the NHL because of his collision with Jimmy Vesey of the New York Rangers.

Rinne is projected to start in net for the Predators tonight, according to DailyFaceoff.com.  Rinne has been one of the Predators’ biggest strengths throughout the season. Currently, he posts a GAA of 2.32 and a SV% of .926.

Toronto Maple Leafs Updates

Kristen Shilton of TSN tweeted the Toronto Maple Leafs’ lines from yesterday’s practice. It’s evident that Mike Babcock didn’t really make many changes after the win against the Ducks.

The biggest item to note is that Carrick will likely sit in the press box for a second consecutive game. It’s perplexing as Carrick has been one of the strongest Toronto Maple Leafs’ puck movers this year. Currently, Carrick posts a higher corsi-for percentage than Roman Polak.

Prediction

The Toronto Maple Leafs have a tough matchup tonight with the Predators.

Next: Marlies Notebook for Feb 6

The Predators defensive unit is one of the best in the league, so this will be a very low scoring affair. Personally, my prediction is that the Toronto Maple Leafs will grab a 2-1 win over Nashville.

Home/Editorials