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SPORTSCENTRE Reporter

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TSN Toronto reporter Mark Masters checks in daily with news and notes on the Maple Leafs, who held an optional morning skate at Canadian Tire Centre ahead of Saturday’s game against the Senators. 

Help is on the way.

Toronto's blue line will get a big boost tonight as Travis Dermott returns after missing 14 games with a shoulder injury.

"It's tough, especially when the team's not performing like we know we can, it can be pretty frustrating sitting there pretty helpless," the 23-year-old said of the time off. "But, it kind of makes you want to come back more and stronger, and when you do come back you want to be ready. It kind of pushes you into that mindset where you really want to come back and help as much as I can."

"He’s just a really good puck-moving defenceman," said centre Auston Matthews. "He makes plays offensively, the break-outs, he can make passes on his forehand, backhand so he’s obviously a pretty big part of that back end and happy to have him back."

Dermott sustained the injury after taking a big hit from Edmonton’s Brad Malone in a game on Feb. 27. He’s worked hard through some physical practices and now feels ready to absorb a check. Well, as ready as possible.

"I don’t know how much you can say that that’s 100% like a game, but I'm as prepared as I think I can be and I feel confident with it so I’m going out there and I'll see how it feels tonight."

Dermott's injury coincided with Jake Gardiner being shutdown with a back injury leaving the Leafs without two of their better puck movers on the blue line. It was a double whammy that proved hard to overcome as Toronto went 6-5-3 allowing 54 goals (3.86 per game).

"Dermy’s a guy who’s real good with the puck,” noted head coach Mike Babcock. "He’s got good fast twitch, he thinks it and moves it and so he’s good on the O-zone blue line and he’s getting better on his own blue line and in his own zone. He’s an important player for us. When you take Gards and him out of our line-up, our ability to generate offence from the back and get your forwards the puck both on the O-zone blue line and just out of your own zone wasn’t the same at all."

The left-handed Dermott will slot in on the right side.

 "I'd like everyone to be right and left, in a perfect world that’s where they'd be," Babcock admitted. "I couldn’t go to (lefty Jake Muzzin) and say, 'Hey Muzz, could you shoot right for me?' It doesn't work like that, but, in saying all that, you just want good players and they got to play where they got to play so when you’re the junior guy you end up moving."

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While Dermott will be paired with Martin Marincin tonight, it's likely he'll have a new partner for Monday’s game against the Islanders. After playing for the Marlies in Utica last night, Calle Rosen will be recalled from the American Hockey League. The 25-year-old Swede is having an excellent season in the minors, but had his momentum slowed after sustaining a foot injury on Feb. 22. He only returned to game action last weekend.

"We actually thought he had an opportunity in training camp and then, like lots of players, it’s hard to make the team and it didn’t go like he wanted," Babcock said. "But he went back and had a good year and then he got injured. He would’ve been up a while ago, but got injured and we wanted to make sure he got back and was feeling good and playing good before we brought him up. You want to catch him being as good as he can be and doing things right and he’ll get an opportunity while Gards is out of the lineup.”

Rosen has 46 points in 54 games with the Marlies and was named an AHL all-star this season.

"He’s a great player,” said Dermott, "one of the best defensive skaters I’ve ever played with it so it’ll be exciting to see him up here again."

In December, Rosen signed a two-year contract extension with the Leafs with an annual average value of $750,000.

Added Babcock, "We're hopeful, because of his hockey sense, because of his skating, that he can be an important player in years to come.”

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Tonight will be Toronto's first game against Ottawa since Senators owner Eugene Melnyk criticized the Leafs' rebuild in an interview with radio station CFRA 580 noting, "mistakes were made and somebody forgot about defence.”

Will those words add any spice to the Battle of Ontario rivalry?

"Not really," said Dermott. "I mean, people are going to say what they want to say whether it’s a GM or a fan on the street so we worry about what we have to worry about in our room and care about what the people in there say.”

The critique is nothing new for Dermott and Toronto’s defence.

"Always trying to prove ourselves," he said. "I think our D core has been looked at as a weak part for a while and I know every single guy that’s a part of it likes to push back."

The Leafs were humbled by the last-place Senators 6-2 just two weeks ago although Babcock says that’s not the only reason his group should be motivated tonight.

"Well, that’s part of it, but we have an opportunity to clinch and we also have an opportunity to tie the Leaf road record for wins. So, there's lots of things. The other thing about it though is we have five opportunities to get better. I think maybe that's the most important thing for our group."

The Leafs need to gain one more point or have the Canadiens lose a point to secure a playoff spot. With 22 road wins on the season, Toronto needs just one more to tie the franchise’s single-season record set in 2003-04.

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But the most important goal, as Babcock noted, is getting ready for the playoffs. How do they do that?

"Just finding our consistency," said Matthews, "making sure we're playing a full 60 minutes, not getting away from our game whether we’re up or down, just playing the same way and just coming in waves and waves and I think that’s the biggest thing for us heading into this last week is finding our consistency."

Babcock is narrowing his focus down the stretch to keep his players sharp. For example, Friday’s workout was primarily about special teams.

"We basically have a theme of the day," Babcock explained. "Whether that be the offensive part we’re working on or identifying some players that we can work on like we think it's going to be in our first-round match-up, there’s a number of things we can do that way, but just growing your game … and trying to be feeling real good going in."

"Playing our perfect game is a big picture and there’s a lot of things that come into it," said Dermott, "so I think as we come down to the end you try to focus on things individually as opposed to a big part and it seems to come together easier and kind of it’s less of a headache … just focus on one thing and get that down pat."

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As part of the special teams work on Friday, the Leafs tested out some dramatically different power play units. After going with a stacked top unit all season, a more balanced approach will be on deck in the final few games.

"You need different stuff," said Matthews, who leads the team with 11 man-advantage markers. "You can't do the same thing over and over again, people watch video, they see what you like to do and so you can’t be doing the same thing every time, you got to bring different stuff to the table, you know, make sure you’re changing it up and keeping them guessing."

At practice, Matthews skated on the left flank with a group that included Morgan Rielly (point), William Nylander (right flank), Andreas Johnsson (bumper/slot) and Zach Hyman (net front).

"You try not to change much," Matthews said. "We got lots of talent, lots of guys that can make plays and are dynamic so I think moving things around never hurts, get some different looks and hopefully get some offence and score some goals."

The other unit at Friday’s practice featured Muzzin (point), Mitch Marner (right flank), Nazem Kadri (bumper/slot), John Tavares (left flank) and Patrick Marleau (net front).

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Projected Maple Leafs line-up for Saturday’s game:

Hyman-Tavares-Marner

Johnsson-Matthews-Nylander

Marleau-Kadri-Kapanen

Ennis-Gauthier-Brown

 

Rielly-Hainsey

Muzzin-Zaitsev

Marincin-Dermott

 

Sparks starts

Andersen