Time right for Soshnikov to get a fresh start: Babcock

Mike Babcock had some words of support for Nikita Soshnikov, both through a phone call on Thursday night to the traded winger and then via reporters on Friday.

Soshnikov was sent to the St. Louis Blues for a fourth-round pick in 2019, dropping the Leafs to 49 contracts and giving Leafs general manager Lou Lamoriello some flexibility as the Feb. 26 NHL trade deadline looms.

“This is a real good opportunity for Sosh,” Babcock said. “He got injured, things did not go well for him and he got off track a little bit. He can be a good penalty killer, can play with speed, he can play with some nastiness.

“It’s important to Sosh that he gets a new lease on life and he does something with it. We’re happy for Sosh that he got a good opportunity in a good organization.”

It didn’t take long for another trade possibility involving the Leafs to emerge, as reports Friday linked them to Detroit Red Wings forward Luke Glendening, who was coached by Babcock for two seasons in Motown.

Though Lamoriello is searching for depth down the middle, you would think there would be more to his desire to add than the 28-year-old Glendening, who is not an overly strong possession player and carries a salary-cap hit of $1.8 million through the 202021 season.

Meanwhile, with Soshnikov gone, forward Josh Leivo told the Toronto Sun his outlook has not changed. His goal is to play in the NHL on an everyday basis, and his preference to do that is with the Leafs.

“I’m coming with the same mindset,” Leivo said. “We have so many guys on our roster and down there (with the Toronto Marlies), it’s competition no matter (that Soshnikov is out of the picture).

“I think Babs knows if you’re working hard, hopefully you get rewarded. Other than that, it’s just a matter of keeping your mind right. Hopefully I can play here, so we’ll see how that goes.”

White-out conditions

The Leafs, for the first time, practised on Friday using the white pants and white gloves they will wear in the outdoor Stadium Series game against the Washington Capitals on March 3.

The all-white uniforms drew mixed reviews in the dressing room.

“Vision felt a bit tough with all the white whirring around, but hopefully we get a little more used to it as time goes on,” winger James van Riemsdyk said. “We could have an advantage, maybe sneak an extra guy on the ice.”

Said Auston Matthews: “It’s a lot of white. A lot of white out there.”

And what did Babcock think of all that white?

“Yeah, um, what else?” the coach said, clearly not impressed as he sought another question during his post-practice scrum.

Loose Leafs

For several drills during practice, healthy scratches Matt Martin and Leivo worked as a defence pair. “They could get more work instead of standing and missing reps, and we did not wear out six D with a game (Saturday),” Babcock said. “It was about getting everyone the work load they needed in the shortest period of time.” … With five wins in a row and victories in nine of their past 10 games, are the Leafs performing with the most confidence they have had this season? “I don’t know about that,” defenceman Ron Hainsey said. “We didn’t have a great game the other night (a 6-3 win against Columbus on Wednesday despite being outshot 57-28). I don’t know if we were coming out of the rink doing cartwheels after that one. We won, but our goaltender was certainly our best player by far. Not at this point (is confidence higher than before).” … Author Denis Gibbons is scheduled to sign copies of his new book, Hockey My Door to Europe, at the Sport Gallery in the Distillery District on Saturday afternoon from 1-4 p.m.