Kadri gets chance to redeem himself
Leafs welcome forward back for Game 5
After missing a TORONTO crucial chunk of the Toronto Maple Leafs’ first-round series against the Boston Bruins, Nazem Kadri is ready to turn the page on his three-game suspension.
With the Leafs facing elimination in Game 5 Saturday night in Boston, the 27-year-old centre has no choice.
Kadri must be impactful for the Leafs, down 3-1 in the best-of-seven series, while shedding any rust that may have accumulated during the past week when his Toronto teammates and the Bruins battled.
“You have to trust in one another,” Kadri said Friday, speaking to reporters for the first time since he was suspended, the fourth NHL-levied suspension in his career.
“(Winning three games in a row to win the series) would definitely make a good story.
“We’re going to approach it game by game and you never know how much things can change in the course of one game.
“Our mentality is to try to pull this one out — we understand it’s going to be a tough task — but you come home 3-2, it’s a different ball game.”
Kadri had more than enough time to stew after his hit on Bruins forward Tommy Wingels in Game 1 of the series earned him the three-game break. Kadri didn’t like that Wingels had just elbowed Mitch Marner in the face, and rammed Wingels into the side boards.
Kadri said he was “disappointed” when he learned he would have to sit out three games.
“I was not expecting that,” Kadri said. “That particular play, I just felt like a liberty had been taken on Mitch and I’m always going to stand up for my teammates and stand up for myself.
“That part is not going to change about me. Was it worthy of a suspension? I definitely think so. But I think the three games is definitely a little harsh.”
Meanwhile, Patrice Bergeron, who was a late scratch for Game 4 because of an upper-body injury, skated Friday in Boston and a decision will be made on his game participation at some point on Saturday.
While the expectation is Kadri will slip back into his usual spot on the Leafs’ second line between Patrick Marleau and Marner, there’s no discounting the play of Tomas Plekanec during Kadri’s absence. Plekanec was sharp in Games 3 and 4 between Marleau and Marner.