• Wed. Dec 11th, 2024

Maple Leafs set to make a major adjustment on defense before Saturday’s matchup with the Bruins.

The Toronto Maple Leafs are shaking things up on defense ahead of Saturday’s clash with the Boston Bruins.

Following two disappointing losses to teams they were expected to beat handily—the Columbus Blue Jackets and St. Louis Blues—the Leafs find themselves at 4-4-0 instead of a more promising 6-2-0. The Blues in particular humbled the Leafs with a decisive 5-1 victory, prompting Leafs coach Craig Berube to make some big moves on the blueline.

During last night’s game, Berube shifted Oliver Ekman-Larsson up to play alongside Morgan Rielly and moved Chris Tanev down with Jake McCabe. This lineup tweak quickly paid off, as Ekman-Larsson scored his first goal as a Maple Leaf, courtesy of a slick setup from Rielly. Though the Blues ultimately piled on, scoring three unanswered goals, Berube stuck with the new defensive pairings in this morning’s practice.

This new arrangement brings an intriguing dynamic to Toronto’s defense: pairing Tanev and McCabe offers a solid shutdown line for stifling opponents’ top players, while the offensive pairing of Rielly and Ekman-Larsson may add firepower, albeit at the cost of some defensive stability. This lineup experiment could prove promising in the offensive zone—time will tell if it’s the spark the Leafs need.

By Admin

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