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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. The team practised at the Ford Performance Centre on Friday before travelling to Philadelphia. 

John Tavares participated in a second straight practice on Friday, once again skating on a line with Trevor Moore and Mitch Marner.

“Definitely getting closer and hopefully I’m good for tomorrow,” he said after the workout. “With contact and what not it’s been pretty good. It’s always hard to say specifically just because practice is another step and then a game is another level, so it's just making sure I’m really feeling comfortable and confident that I can go out there and play my game and be effective.”

Extra padding has been added to Tavares’ right glove, but the last hurdle is determining whether the right index finger, which was broken by a Morgan Rielly shot on Oct. 16, is strong enough.

“Just trying to have that same type of ability to be able to bear down when you need to bear down,” Tavares explained. “To me, when you really have to bear down (is when) you're boxing out a guy around the net, trying to win a battle in the corner, bearing down on a faceoff, that seems when you really tend to need the most amount of force or really need to use a lot of leverage. Shooting is different, it’s a little bit more of a feel type of thing and a lot of that is in my bottom hand, which is good.”

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Tavares helps the Leafs in so many different ways, but one key area will be the power play. Toronto is just 2 for 20 since Tavares got hurt, with the top unit striking just once. The right-handed William Nylander has been filling in as the bumper player on the top unit.

“The man in the middle on our power play hasn't been a left-handed shot,” noted coach Mike Babcock. "We're not keeping anybody off (Auston Matthews) that way, and that will make a huge difference to us."

“He’s a shot threat when the puck is around Mitchy’s side,” said Matthews. “You look at Washington, who we just played, they have three righties there in the middle, up top and then Ovi on his side and it’s five on four and ... usually somebody’s open.”

Babcock also points out that Nylander's return to the second unit will make that group more dangerous. 

 

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Moore, Tavares and Marner got a brief look together in the last two games before the injury and Babcock believes the 24-year-old has earned another chance. 

“Everybody’s always a better player when they’re in the right slot, but when injuries happen other people get opportunity. Moore has done a good job and he's been at the net and got pucks back. That's what we want for those guys," Babcock said. “Obviously, Hyman’s the best there is in hockey for that. So, there’s an opportunity for (Moore) and he earned it. It's not like we just fired him there. He’s earned it.”

Hyman is inching toward his own return from off-season knee surgery and, as you might’ve guessed, Babcock is excited by the prospect. 

“Even the people that aren’t fans are now fans,” the coach said with a smile. 

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After a lacklustre October, which saw the Leafs win just six of 14 games, there is plenty of angst in the Toronto market.

“There’s a lot of things we can improve on and that we are improving on,” said Matthews. “I mean, we’re 14 or 15 games in and the world's, like, crashing down on us, but we're staying positive in this room. It's early, still meshing together, new guys, new faces.”

Babcock admits he expected a bit of a slower start due to all of the turnover in the off-season. 

“I don't think I’m surprised,” he said.

But now the coach is setting a more urgent tone. 

“We need to get healthy, we need to get playing at a high level,” Babcock said. “I think our schedule's set up good for us now, I really do, and so now we got to get some traction. We got to know what we are. We need to know what we hang our hat on.”

What do they hang their hat on now? 

“Nothing. We’re still trying to figure it out.”

The Leafs enter November outside a playoff spot, but are getting healthier. Travis Dermott made his season debut on Tuesday and Tavares will be back soon with Hyman to follow. 

Toronto does have three-back-to-back sets in November, but unlike the four in October, their opponent in the second games will also be playing on consecutive nights. 

Several players have also pointed out that longer road trips in November will allow for more bonding opportunities. ​

So, there should be no excuses moving forward. It’s early, but it’s not that early.

“What you try to do is try to get out in the first 20 (games) and you try to get yourself established,” Babcock said. “You know who you are and you also want to get yourself in a position where you aren't under duress ... We got six more (games) here and we got to find a game that we can bottle or that’s our formula that we can say, ‘This is what we do and we do it every day.’”

What does that look like? 

“We’re going to work at it,” is all the coach would say. 

 

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Jake Muzzin left Tuesday's game against Washington after taking a big hit from Tom Wilson. The defenceman was diagnosed with a charley horse and missed Wednesday's practice. After a team day off, Muzzin returned to practice on Friday, but skated as an extra. 

Babcock revealed Muzzin will miss Saturday's game for personal reasons. Martin Marincin skated in his spot beside Tyson Barrie. 

 

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Timothy Liljegren has a moustache that is already in mid-Movember form. 

“He’s 20 and it looks like he’s 50,” said a smiling Rasmus Sandin. 

Sandin has a few hairs above his upper lip right now. Is he hoping to emulate his defence partner with the Marlies? 

“I'm going to try,” Sandin said sheepishly. 

“He would if he could,” joked Liljegren. 

And while Sandin, 19, still looks the part of a teenager off the ice, the defenceman proved during a six-game audition with the Leafs that he can hang with the big boys on the ice. 

“I feel like I know I can handle it,” said Sandin of what he learned, “and I know a bit more what the game is like up there. Next time I’m getting up there I want to stay up there, so we’ll see when that happens.”

There are some things Sandin has filed away in his memory bank for when he gets called back up. 

“How quick it is, how heavy players are and how strict it is with all the structure you need to play and that kind of stuff,” he said. “So, it was good taste for me and good receipt and I feel like I know I can play up there.”

While some top prospects take time to adjust after being demoted, Sandin has made a smooth transition back to the Marlies where he emerged as a star last season. 

“He’s been great right from the moment he came down and walked across the hall over to our side,” said coach Sheldon Keefe. “He's come in with a really good attitude. I think he recognizes that he's important in the organization and that he has a bright future. He can just come down and continue to work and play a lot and feel confident and know he can make mistakes and learn from them.”

Has Liljegren noticed much of a change in his buddy? 

“Not that much really,” he said with a grin. “It’s just that he has a little more money now.”

“Hasn't skipped a beat,” observed Marlies goalie Kasimir Kaskisuo. “He's an outgoing guy, really positive. That's good to see … I feel like he's doing everything right and I can't say what his flaw would be so he does everything at a high level.”

“A calm guy,” Liljegren said. “He doesn't stress himself out.”

Sandin has five points in six games in the AHL this season and seems emboldened by his time with the Leafs. 

“Now he does have that experience of another NHL camp, NHL games both preseason and regular season, so that in itself just helps the confidence level,” noted Keefe. “I think he’s a great player, but his time here now can just (be about) continuing to fine-tune his game and, most importantly, just mature and get stronger. With him it's not necessarily that he’s not ready, it’s more so when the Leafs are ready for him to play the role and minutes that he’s going to be capable of playing in the future. The time's not right so he can continue to develop and grow here. I think we’re trying to take advantage of that every day.”

“It's been different,” Sandin said. “Up there I was averaging about 13 minutes or whatever it was per game (12:13) and so down here it’s been a lot of ice time, which all hockey players want ... so that's the part I like and then there's a couple things I need to develop.”

 

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Kaskisuo played a key role in the Marlies’ run to the conference final last season, posting a .927 save percentage in 12 post-season games.  

“He was the biggest part of it,” said winger Jeremy Bracco. “We came up short in the end, but what Kas did was remarkable and, obviously, you see the start to this season and nothing's changed, so we’re hoping he can continue that.”

Kaskisuo is unbeaten in regulation so far this season with a 4-0-1 record and .936 save percentage. 

“Things started clicking last year,” the Finn said. “I was able to ride that wave into this year.”

“The biggest thing has been his mindset,” said Keefe, “just how he's prepared every day and his own confidence in himself.”

Kaskisuo struggled to get in a groove during much of last year's regular season, finishing with a .896 save percentage, so where did the confidence spike come from? 

“I think having a consistent backup has really helped,” Keefe said. “Last year, the arrival of Michael Hutchinson (in January) really helped to push him and this year with Joe Woll, as talented and competitive a young guy as he is, I think that helps as well.”

Kaskisuo has never played in the NHL, but did dress as Toronto’s backup in a handful games last season when Frederik Andersen and Garret Sparks both got hurt. 

“He's just more mature,” said Keefe. “It's the first time now, too, where he’s been here and really feels like he's here. Previously he went up and down with the ECHL and was loaned out to Chicago in the American League and last year was a full year for him and now he's come back so I think all of that contributes to him having a little extra confidence in the net.”

Kaskisuo says a major development in his personal life midway through last season also played a role in his evolution. 

“Everybody tells me it’s the birth of my daughter,” he said. “It was that. I mean, it’s life- changing. And, of course, I was called up there for a little bit there, so that's kind of a nice boost and a shake up so I felt like all those things came together and shook it up to turn my season around.”

Has becoming a dad changed his perspective? 

“I think it has. You mature a little bit; you get a little more confidence that you're head of the family now and all those things. It matures you a little bit and gives you confidence.”

With Hutchinson going 0-3-1 with an .885 save percentage in his first month as the Leafs backup goalie, the door could open for Kaskisuo to get a look in the NHL soon. Is he ready? 

“There's only one way to find out,” the 26-year-old said with a chuckle, “put me in the game. But, yeah, I feel like I'm confident I can play at a high level. The AHL is a good league, but the NHL is a step up. It would be a dream come true and just working toward that every day.”

 

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Lines at Friday's practice: 

 

Johnsson - Matthews - Nylander 

Moore - Tavares - Marner 

Mikheyev - Kerfoot - Kapanen 

Timashov - Shore - Gauthier 

Spezza, Hyman 

 

Rielly - Ceci 

Marincin - Barrie 

Dermott - Holl 

Muzzin 

 

Andersen 

Hutchinson

 

Power-play units at Friday's practice: 

 

Rielly 

Marner - Tavares - Matthews 

Johnsson 

 

Barrie 

Kapanen - Kerfoot - Nylander  

Mikheyev