Fraser and four more Leafs reveal what got them to the NHL,
Youngsters excited but aware stay with big club could be brief; Liles clears waivers, joins Marlies
Morgan Rielly and Carter Ashton shared a similar, under-the-gun viewpoint when the Maple Leafs finalized their roster Monday afternoon.
“My life is on the line,” Ashton said as the Leafs, with salary cap and injury considerations weighing heavily, decided to keep the two for Tuesday’s opener in Montreal.
Ashton meant his hockey life, and he wasn’t being melodramatic. The Leafs manoeuvred all weekend long via the waiver wire to get to the 23-man limit by Monday’s deadline. They also put Frazer McLaren on long-term injury reserve, providing more cap relief and opening another roster spot for Troy Bodie, who cleared waivers.
As it was, the club practised one forward short Monday.
Toronto opens the regular season with back-to-back road games in Montreal and Philadelphia, which was announced after the Leafs had approved a pre-season schedule that ended with consecutive games against Detroit on Friday and Saturday. That final tuneup was played with lineups heavy with minor leaguers. Most regulars got the night off and there was no Sunday practice.
Toronto focused on forechecking Monday, while Ashton and Rielly tried to harness their excitement about making the cut.
“It’s a great feeling, but I haven’t proven anything yet,” Rielly said. “This morning when I got here, I had an idea things were looking pretty good. It’s a good feeling, and my goal was to play here this season. It’s a good feeling but really it’s only a good start.”
Both realize their first NHL stints could be short-lived.
The Leafs haven’t tipped their hand on Rielly, but they won’t keep him in the NHL if he doesn’t see enough ice time. They have nine games played to decide. Rielly might play sparingly and still benefit greatly from the experience and regular practice. He’s seventh on the depth chart.
Toronto also has John-Michael Liles with the Marlies after the veteran cleared waivers Monday.
The Leafs have almost $640,000 in salary cap space with McLaren on long-term injury reserve (minimum 10 games and 24 days). The club saves $925,000 with Liles in the AHL, but $2.8 million of his salary still counts against the cap.
Leaf coach Randy Carlyle said the club has “ideas” about Rielly, but nothing etched in stone.
“It’s always a big decision . . . obviously we feel strongly about him,” Carlyle said. “He’s a young lad, he’s shown a lot of (upside).
“The first pre-season game, he impressed . . . he separated himself from other guys. Then the idea was to play him in as many exhibition games as possible. That was his baptism, and he separated himself.
“The nine-game scenario is there, so we have some flexibility right now. Obviously we have to consider: Is he helping our club, and are we helping him?”
The Leafs practised with a first line of Tyler Bozak between Phil Kessel and James van Riemsdyk. Nik Kulemin appears set to take the suspended David Clarkson’s place on the second line with Joffrey Lupul and Nazem Kadri.
The third line looks like Dave Bolland between Mason Raymond and possibly Ashton, with Jay McLement, Colton Orr and Bodie on the fourth.
McLaren “is still a ways away,” Carlyle said.
“Twelve forwards and six defencemen, I see us playing that way. The forward lines you saw today, there’s probably only one change (coming Tuesday).”