The Toronto Maple Leafs are the first team in the history of the NHL to get better from a suspension and two injuries.
Though Auston Matthews remains out of the lineup (and hopefully will not return until he is fully healthy) the Toronto Maple Leafs are in the best shape they've been in all year.
Thanks to the generous help of the NHL Player Safety Dept. the Leafs won't have to play Ryan Reavres for any of the next five games. Hopefully their coach will witness what everyone else already knows, and Reaves will be used much more sparingly, if at all, going forward.
As for the other injuries, the team does miss Max Pacioretty, but based on how David Kampf and Max Domi have been playing (and more importantly WHERE in the lineup they have been playing) their injuries also serve to make the Leafs better.
The Maple Leafs are in the best shape they've been in all year vs Golden Knights
With Fraser Minten and Nikita Grebenkin set to make their season debuts, this is the most excited I've been for a Leafs game all season long.
The injection of speed and youth into the lineup is going to pay immediate dividends. Even if the rookies need an adjustment period, the fact is their bottom-six just got a lot better at scoring than it was the last time they played.
While I don't know yet who will replace Domi at centre - and the team is woefully thin - nothing will be worse than Domi has been for the last dozen games or so.
The Leafs did not do any line rushes at their practice today, so their lines are a mystery. There is a possibility that Mitch Marner play some centre, something I've long advocated for, so that is very interesting.
According to David Alter, the Leafs will start Joseph Woll in net, while Simon Benoit will draw back into the lineup. The way things are going for the Leafs worst players, I'd reccomend Benoit wear extra protective equipment for tonight's game.
The Leafs injury list right now is crazy: Matthews, Pacioretty, Jarnkrok, Domi and Kampf. That's five out of 12 regular forwards. They are also without Reaves, making half of their normal lineup unavailable for this game.
The Knights have one less loss, but otherwise have the same record as the Leafs. They lost their last game to Washington, while the Leafs will be looking for their third win in a row.