The Toronto Maple Leafs held an optional skate at Scotiabank Arena on Friday. The Calgary Flames held a full skate.
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Flames coach Darryl Sutter was asked Friday what adjustments he's looking for from highly skilled stars like Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan.
"It's just a little bit more of their shot count, shot quality, pace of the game and 200-foot game," the veteran bench boss explained. "You look at the Toronto Maple Leafs, they play a complete game and their top players have made that adjustment to play a complete game, so you have to try to emulate those teams to have any success here."
Gaudreau, Monahan and linemate Brett Ritchie have been dumping and chasing the puck more since Sutter took over.
"Whether I'm comfortable with it or not that’s our team, that's our system right now," Gaudreau said. "You need to adapt. It doesn't matter which coach you're playing for, you need to follow his instructions and make sure you're playing the right way and the way he wants you to play."
"We're trying to limit turnovers," said Monahan. "We're trying to hold pucks more in their end. If you get chances off the rush you're going to take it, but if they're not there we have to continue to play the right way."
Calgary had won three straight with Sutter behind the bench before getting shelled 7-3 on Wednesday in Edmonton. After that game, Sutter noted the Flames don't have the same firepower as other teams in the North Division and have to play a more disciplined style to have success.
"I haven't found the net too much in the past few games, but we're 3-1 and that's all you can really ask for," said Gaudreau, who has one goal and six shots in the past four outings. "When you're 3-1 with the new guy, I mean, that's a recipe for success."
Sutter isn’t juggling his forward lines tonight pointing out that the groups have played fairly well. The coach cited "needless penalties" as the major issue in Wednesday's setback. The Oilers scored on three of four power-play chances.
"You see in this division where there are nights like that, basically power-play nights," said Sutter. "Our team has responded very well. It's not an issue."
"We know we have skill on our team," said Monahan. "We know we can score. We got to check first and that's when we'll get our opportunities."
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The Flames have lost three of four games to the Leafs this season, but went 1-0-1 during a trip to Toronto last month. The Leafs didn’t score a five-on-five goal against Calgary in those two games.
"We've played well against them in the past," said Gaudreau. "We've played these guys pretty well."
"We know what we're up against," Monahan said. "It's a game we're looking forward to and we want to set the tone ourselves and get pucks behind them. We want to have the puck more than them and be heavy with it in their end and keep an eye [on] those top guys."
The Leafs should have a lot of energy thanks to a four-day break between games. The rest has helped top-line centre Auston Matthews recover from a nagging wrist injury. Matthews has three goals, all from in tight, in seven games since returning from a two-game absence.
"Tony keeps pretty even-keeled," said linemate Mitch Marner. "Our group tries not to get frustrated and stay the same mood at all times. I'm sure it is frustrating for him to not be able to shoot it as well as he'd like, but definitely looks like he's coming back to normal and it's a big help for our team."
Already dealing with a hand injury, Matthews hurt his right wrist in a game against the Flames on Feb. 24 when defenceman Rasmus Andersson checked him hard into the boards.
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Alex Galchenyuk will make his Leafs debut tonight slotting in on the second line with John Tavares and William Nylander.
"Seeing what he did with the Marlies, it seemed like he kind of got his swagger back with his confidence with the puck and power-plays seams and just kind of getting his magic back," Marner observed. "Through practice these last couple days you've seen it as well. His chemistry is getting better with JT and Will and hopefully they adapt quickly in this game tonight. Everyone is excited to see him tonight."
Acquired in a trade with Carolina on Feb. 15, Galchenyuk played six games in the American Hockey League, producing eight points before being recalled by the Leafs this week.
"He'll get a chance to play with good players tonight and I thought those guys looked really good in practice yesterday," said coach Sheldon Keefe. "I think the way that he moves the puck and the way that he can score and shoot the puck pairs well with them."
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Wayne Simmonds returns to the Leafs lineup tonight after missing six weeks with a broken wrist.
"It's been a long time coming for him," said Keefe. "He's the kind of guy who has a ton of energy and he hasn't been able to utilize a great deal of that in a competitive environment. Just to be in the practices was real good for him and we wanted to see how he responded coming in here today, but he feels good and we're happy to have him back in the mix."
Simmonds will start on the fourth line with Pierre Engvall and Jason Spezza and resume his role as the net-front guy on the top power-play unit. His mere presence on the bench is also expected to provide a spark.
"He's got a strong voice, a loud voice, you know, a guy who will stand up and kind of yell or encourage the group from one end to the other," Keefe noted. "He also has a strong voice on the ice with his linemates and with the opposition. He's got a lot of respect in the league."
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After giving up seven goals on 30 shots in Wednesday's loss to the Oilers, Jacob Markstrom gets the start again for Calgary.
"He had a rough night last game and we're looking for a bounce-back game tonight out of him," said Sutter. "That's what I'm looking for."
Frederik Andersen starts for the Leafs. Jack Campbell will be the backup goalie. It is the first time Campbell has dressed in a game since aggravating a leg injury on Feb. 27 in Edmonton.
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Sutter will be coaching against a familiar foe tonight in Joe Thornton. The pair have seen a lot of each other over the years in the Pacific Division.
"I have a ton of respect for him. It's not just how long he’s played, but [also] the success and how he's played and how he’s played at playoff time," said Sutter. "What gets overlooked is his playoff performances. He's a guy who's knocked on the door lots, but his playoff performance has been immaculate and his ability to recover and play through tough injuries is remarkable."
Thornton has 133 points in 179 career playoff games.
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Projected Leafs lineup for Friday's game:
Thornton - Matthews - Marner
Galchenyuk - Tavares - Nylander
Mikheyev - Kerfoot - Hyman
Simmonds - Engvall - Spezza
Rielly - Brodie
Muzzin - Holl
Dermott - Bogosian
Andersen starts
Campbell
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Projected Flames lineup for Friday's game:
Tkachuk - Lindholm - Dube
Gaudreau - Monahan - Ritchie
Lucic - Backlund - Mangiapane
Bennett - Ryan - Leivo
Giordano - Andersson
Hanifin - Tanev
Valimaki - Nesterov
Markstrom starts
Rittich
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMifGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnRzbi5jYS9kYXJyeWwtc3V0dGVyLXdhbnRzLWNhbGdhcnktZmxhbWVzLXRvcC1lbmQtdGFsZW50LXRvLWVtdWxhdGUtY29tcGxldGUtdG9yb250by1tYXBsZS1sZWFmcy1zdGFycy0xLjE2MTAzODLSAQA?oc=5
2021-03-19 20:16:59Z
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