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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 Leafs and Washington Capitals skated at the Air Canada Centre on ahead of Game 4.

- Leo Komarov used to be linemates with Alexander Ovechkin in the KHL where they also became good friends while playing for Moscow Dynamo during the NHL lockout. After regular season games between Toronto and Washington reporters will often see the pair talking to each other, catching up outside the dressing room. But that did not happen after Game 3. "It's nothing you really want to do, because you want to stay focused," Komarov said. "I'm not making friends out there. But what happens on the ice, I think, will stay on the ice." Komarov and linemates Nazem Kadri and Connor Brown have been matched against Washington's top line so far in the series and in Game 3, with the benefit of last change, Mike Babcock was able to get them out against Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom and T.J. Oshie most of the time. "Obviously, he's a kind of a rat out there," Ovechkin said of Komarov. "He's trying to get under your skin. For me, it doesn't matter what he's trying to do out there, like to talk to me or do something. I'm trying to concentrate on the different things right now than talk about Leo."

 

- Kadri believes his line has frustrated the Capitals top forwards so far based on the body language he sees from them on the ice. "Leo's doing a great job," Kadri said. "I mean, he's an agitator. That's what he does best. He gets under everyone's skin. I couldn't imagine playing against somebody like that. It would drive me crazy." Kadri notes that Ovechkin, Backstrom and Oshie don't like to engage in trash talk. "They're not big on the verbal altercations, but that's not saying we aren't. That's not going to change our perspective," Kadri said with a grin. 

Facing off against a pal in the playoffs is a tricky proposition, but Komarov has embraced it. "It's different," he said. "It's not easy, but I'm kind of enjoying it too, because you want to play good and maybe have something to talk about in the summer too." Komarov and Ovechkin's friendship has survived tough times in the past. In November of 2014, Ovechkin's blind-side hit on Komarov left the Finn with a concussion.

- Ovechkin's ice time dipped noticeably on Monday. Is he hoping to get more minutes in Game 4? "I don't care," he said. "I think I play good minutes. Again, right now it's not about my ice time ... It's time to take, for you guys, a little bit of pressure off us and let us do our job. I think we manage the game well. We have to think about how to score goals and how to get this team to play our way, not their way."

- The Capitals got quite the scare at their morning skate when Marcus Johansson collided with Braden Holtby during a drill. The action came to a standstill as Holtby appeared to be in pain and slowly got up. But the reigning Vezina Trophy winner was good to continue and declared himself fine when he met with the media. "It was just a practice play. It happens," he said. "You get hit sometimes. It's hockey." Head coach Barry Trotz came over to check on his star goalie moments after the hit. "I had to sort of catch myself for a second, see if he needed a second or two and he said, 'I'm fine,'" Trotz said. "He was just skating it off and we resumed. Just like anybody, when you're goaltender gets bumped over, your heart stops for a second."

- Trotz is tweaking his bottom six forward group in an attempt to generate a spark. Tom Wilson and Brett Connolly flipped lines at the morning state. Wilson, a Toronto native who scored the overtime winner in Game 1, skated with Lars Eller and Andre Burakovsky while Connolly slotted in beside Jay Beagle and Daniel Winnik. "You'd like a little more production out of it, no question," Trotz said when asked about the Eller line. "They've had some shifts and some zone time and now they just need to get on the board a little bit." What does Wilson, known for his physical play, bring to that group? "He's Tom Wilson. Everybody knows who Tom Wilson is. That's what he brings," the coach quipped.

- Lines at Leafs morning skate: 

Hyman-Matthews-Nylander
Komarov-Kadri-Brown
van Riemsdyk-Bozak-Marner
Martin-Boyle-Kapanen
Leivo, Fehr

Gardiner-Zaitsev
Hunwick-Rielly
Marincin-Carrick
Smith-Marchenko

Andersen
McElhinney 

- Power play units at Leafs morning skate: 

Rielly
Bozak-Kadri-Marner
JvR

Gardiner
Matthews-Brown-Nylander
Komarov