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TSN Toronto Maple Leafs Reporter

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TORONTO – In a season where the Maple Leafs have far exceeded expectations offensively, they’ve become no stranger to drama surrounding their eighth defenceman.

First it was Frank Corrado, who publicly expressed his frustration with head coach Mike Babcock in mid-December after being scratched in 28 of the team’s first 29 games while “Free Frankie” became the rallying cry of the team’s fan base.

When Corrado was finally placed on waivers Feb. 4, with just two NHL games to his credit this season, it was so the Maple Leafs could claim blueliner Alexey Marchenko.

Like his predecessor, Marchenko quickly became familiar with being benched. He’s been a healthy scratch in Toronto’s last 10 games, while Babcock fielded question after question about when he'd get an opportunity to play.

With the coach preferring to keep players on their natural sides, a chance for Marchenko was created when Connor Carrick left in the first period of Tuesday’s game with an upper-body injury. Even with Martin Marincin ahead of him on the depth chart, the right-shooting Marchenko will make his Maple Leafs debut Thursday against the New York Rangers.

“[Marchenko]’s no different than Josh Leivo, where you sit there and sit there and sit there,” Babcock said, referencing the winger being scratched for 32 of 34 games after returning from an AHL conditioning stint in November.

“You can say anything you want about the coach under your breath, and you can do anything you want to get as competitive as you want, but when you get your opportunity in life, if you prepare for your opportunity, you often make good on your opportunity.”

For Marchenko, coming to the Maple Leafs made for an easier transition than he would have likely had anywhere else. Drafted by the Detroit Red Wings in 2011 while Babcock was still coaching there, Toronto’s systems aren’t much of a departure, and he’s good friends with fellow defender Nikita Zaitsev.

“I’m pretty familiar with what we do, having played for Mike,” Marchenko said. “When you know someone in the dressing room and when you know the coach, it really helps you. Mike knows what to expect of you and what you can do on the ice. I hope that will help me.”

Playing with the Toronto Marlies in last season’s AHL playoffs, Connor Brown battled against Marchenko and the Grand Rapids Griffins. While he says the team will miss Carrick’s compete level and feistiness, Brown sees a lot of upside in the new addition.

“Alexey has been really good in practice and I knew he was a good player [from before] so it’s nice to see him get an opportunity,” Brown said. “He’s a strong guy, makes it hard to get to the net, and plays a simple game. I think he’ll be a calming influence.”

Marchenko played in 30 games for the Red Wings this season, amassing six assists and a plus-6 rating. He’ll slot in next to Jake Gardiner on Toronto’s second pairing. In the midst of a career season, Gardiner is a high-risk, high-reward defender who’s not afraid to get up on the rush. Marchenko is more the opposite.

“I’ll start simple, no risky plays just easy plays,” he said. “And I’ll try to get to the place I need to be as soon as possible. I think [Jake]’s a great defender, moves the puck well, good skater, sees the ice pretty well, so I hope I can help him.”

“Marchenko has a smart, good stick. He’s not fleet of foot, so [he’s got to] play his game,” Babcock said. “He’s a good passer, courageous guy. I think Marchy’s a real hockey player.”

After losing to the Rangers 5-2 at home on Jan. 19, playing a tighter game defensively will be vital if Toronto hopes to have success Thursday. The Maple Leafs have just five wins in their last 13 games, with two victories coming against playoff teams.

"I think we want to keep it a bit more structured,” Morgan Rielly said. “Last time, we got into a little run and gun with them and gave up some odd-man chances against. Tonight, we want to be a bit tighter, a bit more structured, make sure we're playing more to our systems rather than getting into a track meet with them."

Morning skate notes

- Mitch Marner will miss his fourth consecutive game for the Maple Leafs on Thursday. His return to the lineup remains unclear. “Mitch and I had that little discussion today,” Babcock said. “We wondered how the science project was going and we went back into that room [with the medical staff] and asked a few questions but we didn’t get any good answers. So I don’t know.” Marner has three points in the Maple Leafs’ first two games against New York this season.

- Jimmy Vesey was a hot topic in Toronto last summer. Rumours swirled that the Maple Leafs were in the hunt to sign the college free agent right up until he inked a deal with the Rangers in August. Saying it was a “big relief” when his decision was made, Vesey has gone through the same highs and lows as most rookies. He’s tallied 23 points on the season (14 goals, nine assists) while seeing considerable time on the Rangers’ fourth line. While there were still a number of teams in the mix, Vesey said he spoke to his one-time teammate Auston Matthews (who played one exhibition game at the 2015 World Championship, where Vesey was also representing the USA) about the possibility of playing with him in Toronto. “I talked to Auston just a little bit, first over the phone and then some texting,” Vesey said. “I’m not really surprised by his season. He’s a generational player, world-class player, whatever you want to say. He’s done really well, and it’s been good to see, especially as an American kid.”

- Good starts have been an easy indicator of the Maple Leafs success this season. Their 5-4 overtime win against the Jets on Tuesday was just the second time this season they’ve won a game when trailing after the first period, but they’re 18-1-5 when leading after 20 minutes. Toronto is 23-5-5 when scoring first and have the second-most first-period goals in the NHL (61).

- Despite how well Curtis McElhinney has played in relief of Frederik Andersen this season (3-3-0), Babcock answered “no” when asked if the backup will see more action down the stretch. Andersen is at 48 starts already this season, and if McElhinney gets all four starts on the second night of a back-to-back (as has been the pattern), Andersen will hit 66 starts in the regular season. His career high is 54.