Leafs buoyed by return of Kadri

“(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 that he would have to sit out three games at such an important time.

“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 on Friday morning in Boston and a decision will be made on his possible 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, noted by all observers, but none more than Leafs coach Mike Babcock.

Plekanec was not good in a reduced role before taking Kadri’s spot, but can he be as effective if his minutes are decreased again? Plekanec would return to the fourth line between Andreas Johnsson and Kasperi Kapanen. Dominic Moore would come out.

“I asked (Plekanec) that same question,” Babcock said. “I said ‘I don’t know what I’m doing, what if I (put you back on the fourth line)?’

“You found your game as a Leaf, we need you to be that good. I think he is feeling good about himself. Kap and Johnny are good players.” to any conclusions, about either home run rates or the composition of the baseball.

This year’s decline in homers “might be due to the unusually cold weather,” Nathan said in an email, adding “I am generally skeptical of claims that the ball has changed, whether ‘juiced’ or ‘unjuiced.’ ”

Today’s version of baseball is increasingly an all-or-nothing proposition in which, in 2017, more than a third of plate appearances (33.5 per cent) resulted in either a walk, a strikeout or a homer, the highest rate of “three true outcomes” and the lowest rate of balls in play in history.

The problem comes when the recipe for all-or-nothing baseball becomes too heavy on the nothing, and too light on the all.