Babcock keen to see ‘real players’ on the ice
Toronto close to its final roster ahead of exhibition games against Montreal, Detroit
Finally, it’s down to the nittygritty at Toronto Maple Leafs camp.
Or as coach Mike Babcock put it bluntly Tuesday with three NHL pre-season games remaining: “We will get to see real players playing against real players.” No offence to those Leafs bound for the Toronto Marlies, but Babcock is right. The roster the Leafs will ice Wednesday in Montreal against the Canadiens will closely resemble their regular-season lineup — the same goes for the Habs — with just a few question marks.
Trevor Moore practised Tuesday in Zach Hyman’s spot on the left side with John Tavares and Mitch Marner, while the Leafs’ bottom four on defence (after the top two pairs of Morgan RiellyRon Hainsey and Jake GardinerNikita Zaitsev) consists of Calle Rosen-Igor Ozhiganov and Travis Dermott-Justin Holl.
And though Calvin Pickard was the second goalie after Frederik Andersen with the main group, read little into it.
Babcock said Andersen will start two of the remaining preseason games, while incumbent backup Curtis McElhinney will get the other start.
Does Babcock anticipate, then, McElhinney will be the backup Oct. 3, when the Leafs open the regular season against the Canadiens, and not Garret Sparks? “I don’t anticipate anything,” Babcock said. “I just watch.” It’s not expected that the Leafs will carry both McElhinney and Sparks, leaving the possibility of a trade on the table. Both would have to clear waivers in order to be sent to the Marlies. Babcock said the Detroit Red Wings will bring their “A group” to Toronto for the game Friday night at Scotiabank Arena, so expect to see the main Leafs group that night as well. The Leafs and Wings will meet again in Detroit Saturday night, ending the Leafs’ eight-game pre-season. “We have lots of work to do, but we understand that,” Babcock said. “I think these contests we have coming up will really help us. We will get two really good hockey games this week.” Though Hyman has not practised in recent days as he recovers from a hip pointer, Babcock would not confirm that Moore will play in Montreal. Still, Babcock said Moore was “fantastic” with Tavares and Marner during practice.
And yes, players are happy the end of the pre-season is in sight. “You’re itching to get going, for sure,” Auston Matthews said. “It seemed like we were in Niagara a month ago.”
NYLANDER CLOSER?
Other than Hyman, the other issue for the Leafs at forward is William Nylander.
Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas said during an interview on Sportsnet 590 The Fan’s Prime Time Sports Tuesday night that “I do feel like we’re making progress” in negotiations with agent Lewis Gross and that both sides are working toward a long-term deal.
And no, Nylander is not being shopped in the event there is a stalemate.
The lone remaining restricted free agents yet to sign new deals are Nylander and Anaheim Ducks forward Nick Ritchie and Babcock, for obvious reasons, would like to see Nylander put his signature on a new contract. Babcock indicated he has not spoken to Nylander since camp started.
“I just shut it down totally,” Babcock said. “I just didn’t want him or his agent or anyone thinking I was trying to (influence the situation).
“Willie knows we want him back. We would like him back as soon as possible. That’s a business thing between them and Kyle. It’s way easier to be ready to go if you’re here.”
Matthews has been in contact with Nylander, but not a lot. “I kind of leave him alone,” Matthews said. “He is focused on making sure he is in good shape. I have talked to him a little bit over these last couple of weeks, but I don’t really want to keep peppering him. When he signs, he will be ready to come over and get things going.”
FROM THE HASH MARKS
Babcock doesn’t sound worried that the Leafs lost most of their sandpaper when Leo Komarov, Roman Polak and Matt Martin went elsewhere during the offseason. “We’re going to have to do that by committee,” Babcock said. “If we need to tweak our lineup, we will find a way to get that done. I’m not going to Kyle every day and saying we need one thing or another.” … Andersen’s new mask features a depiction of a blue Lego Batman and the skyline of Toronto. As a boy, Andersen counted Lego (invented in Andersen’s home country of Denmark) among his favourite toys and he is a big fan of the Batman movies … Babcock makes a point of calling and/ or visiting as many Leafs in the off-season as possible and was struck by Andersen’s determination. “When I met with him and his family this summer at his home, it was very impressive, to say the least, how badly he wants to have success and how hard he is willing to work,” Babcock said. “That’s good for our team.” Andersen worked on strengthening his core muscles during the summer and said he is feeling “more smooth” on the ice … Forgotten to a degree as McElhinney and Sparks determine who will be the backup, Pickard had a quick, short answer when asked if he considers himself an NHL goalie: “Yeah, absolutely.” Pickard, 26, played in 50 games for the Colorado Avalanche two seasons ago and has played in 87 NHL games in his career. “I can’t get too caught up in (whether he will get a shot with the Leafs),” Pickard said. “Everybody is always watching. There are eyes from all over (other teams).” Pickard won 21 games for the Marlies last season and had a .918 save percentage in 33 games. He will make US$800,000 in 2018-19 no matter where he plays, whether it’s in the minors or the NHL.