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SPORTSCENTRE Reporter

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TSN Toronto reporter Mark Masters checks in daily with news and notes from Maple Leafs practices and game-day skates. The Maple Leafs and Lightning skated at Amalie Arena ahead of tonight's game.

- The list of Leafs players who struggled on Tuesday night is long, but Nazem Kadri is certainly near the top. He was on the ice for five goals against in Florida in just 13:47 of ice time, his lowest total since November. After Thursday's skate, Mike Babcock called on the 26-year-old centre to elevate his game. "All you have to do is look at our big guys. They had a tough night to say the least, so we need those guys to be good players," the coach said. "Your best players have to be your best players. Your leadership group's got to lead and so he's got to step up." The message was received loud and clear. "I can't wait to get out and try to redeem myself," Kadri said. "Obviously it was a bit of a rough game. Things didn't seem to click. We have to be more prepared, more organized and get off to good start, most importantly. We know how big this game is and how poorly we played last game, so we expect a bounce back." Babcock hopes all his players will be feeling the same way. "Anybody who saw the game, whether you were at the game or watched it on TV, knows we let ourselves down. I'm looking for a huge response," Babcock said.

Alternate captain Morgan Rielly noted that the Leafs have talked extensively about what went wrong during Tuesday's embarrassing setback. "We had a long conversation about how we can improve off our last game. We're chasing this team and we have to get back on the right foot here tonight." Were those conversations with the coaching staff or among players? "A little bit of both," Rielly said. "We went over some video and the guys talked either one-on-one or in groups about what we did and how we can be better. Now it's about going out tonight and executing." While guys like Nikita Zaitsev and Kadri are using the last game as motivation, Tyler Bozak is warning against fixating too much on what happened against the Panthers. "You're not going to win every game," Bozak noted. "There's going to be games you lose. I mean, if we would've lost 2-1 we probably wouldn't even be talking about it too much [so] just flush it completely. I don't think anyone's thinking about it anymore and we're just focusing on the task at hand tonight."

- Bozak, hobbled recently by an undisclosed injury issue, practised on Wednesday for the first time in a week and skated again on Thursday morning. Is he feeling better? "Yeah, I am actually. Everything's feeling a lot better and hopefully it keeps improving." Thursday's game is a special one for the Saskatchewan native, who will suit up in the 500th game in his unlikely NHL career. "I'm pretty proud. Being undrafted, I never even knew if I'd have the opportunity to play, so to get here and play 500 has been awesome." Bozak was signed by the Leafs in 2009 out of the University of Denver. In terms of a favourite memory, Bozak, who will turn 31 on Sunday, cites his first-ever game against the Avalanche. "It was against Colorado and that's where I had played in college, so just to be able to say that I made it and I played was just an awesome thing for me."

- Brian Boyle was swarmed by local Tampa reporters on Thursday morning as he prepared to face his old team for the first time since the Feb. 27 trade. There's no doubt that he left a big impression on the folks here. Steven Stamkos, who skated Thursday morning as he continues to work his way back from a serious knee injury, caught up with Babcock, his coach at the World Cup, after the workout and offered a glowing review of the 32-year-old centre. "Stammer made a point of going out of his way to tell me this morning what a good teammate he is and what a good pro he is. We're looking for that to rub off on our guys," Babcock said. What sort of teammate was Boyle in Tampa Bay? "Unbelievable," said defenceman Victor Hedman. "One of the best I've seen. Just a great leader in the locker room and a big character guy ... just an unreal guy. It will be different to play against him, but we got to put the friendship aside for 60 minutes."

- Despite a series of injuries to key players (Tyler Johnson, Vladislav Namestnikov and Cedric Paquette will all remain out on Thursday), the Lightning have surged back into playoff contention, thanks in part to the emergence of 21-year-old Brayden Point, who currently slots in as the top-line centre. "On the talent side of things he's probably where we thought he might end up, just he's done it way faster than we could imagine," said head coach Jon Cooper. "There's been a lot put on his plate and he just keeps passing with flying colours. It's pretty impressive." Rielly isn't surprised. He played with Point in Moose Jaw. "I'm happy for him," said Rielly. "There was never any doubt that he was going to find his way. He came in when he was just 15-years-old so I got a chance to get to know him at an early age. He was a very hard worker back then and he clearly still is. I'm happy he's doing so well, but tonight there are no friends on the ice."

Point appreciates the mentorship role Rielly played during his early days in the WHL. "He's a really good guy," he said. "He's awesome. He likes to have fun and, as a leader, he's such a good player that he led by example." On the ice, Point marvelled at Rielly's hockey IQ. "His vision on the ice [was notable]; he was able to find guys backdoor pretty easily in junior."

 

* Lines at Thursday's morning skate:

Hyman-Matthews-Nylander

Komarov-Kadri-Brown

van Riemsdyk-Bozak-Marner

Martin-Boyle-Soshnikov 

 

Leivo, Smith

Gardiner-Zaitsev

Rielly-Marchenko

Hunwick-Polak

Marincin-Carrick

 

Andersen starts 

McElhinney