Marner playing ‘at his best'; builds momentum after 'all-world' goal
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TSN SportsCentre Reporter Mark Masters reports on the Toronto Maple Leafs, who practised at the Ford Performance Centre on Thursday ahead of their game on Friday night against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
At the end of every practice, Mitch Marner works on his one-timer shots with Manny Malhotra. The Leafs assistant coach usually feeds Marner a series of passes, which he blasts into an empty net. On Thursday, Marner only needed one.
"Me and Manny have a little thing, if we think it's a goal then that's all you need," Marner said. "It only took one, but usually it takes 15."
Marner hammered the puck off the crossbar and in before raising his arm triumphantly and skating away. It was only the latest example that the 25-year-old winger is feeling it. On Tuesday night, Marner produced an incredible goal and an incredible assist against the Vegas Golden Knights. Sheldon Keefe called it the best Marner has looked this season.
"You can just kind of feel it," the coach said. "There were a couple of moments prior to his goal — a couple of shifts previous to that — where he came flying through the neutral zone, made a play, and generated a shot toward the net. He just started to look like Mitch at his best."
That's how Marner felt.
"Just carrying-the-puck-up-ice wise, getting entries with the puck in my hands and making plays off the rush, definitely felt like the best I've felt so far," he confirmed.
Heading into Tuesday's tilt, Marner only had four primary assists and two goals in 13 games. The puck-on-a-string moments that have become a hallmark of his game seemed to be few and far between early on. That's why Tuesday's goal was so notable.
"It felt good," Marner said. "It always feels good when it goes across the goal line regardless of who puts it in, really, but when you do it yourself and to get rewarded for it, it's a good feeling."
Marner stick-handled around four Knights and teammate John Tavares before wiring the puck past Logan Thompson.
"His goal was awesome," gushed linemate Auston Matthews. "His edge work and the detail and focus that he has there and [doing it in] that really tight space is what I thought made the play so special ... Just an all-world play."
Marner noticed the Knights had anticipated a pass when he had the puck in a similar situation earlier in the game.
"The first time I tried to get it off the wall they took away the pass and I tried to force it and got picked," he said. "So, that one there I tried to pull it close to me. Lucky I got it around whoever that was and then kind of had to stickhandle, make Johnny get out of the way, and lucky enough just got it up and over the glove."
A few minutes later, Marner made a no-look pass to set up a Timothy Liljegren goal. Did Liljegren call for it?
"No, he just knew," the defenceman said with a smile. "Unreal pass."
Marner seemed more excited about the sequence leading up to the goal.
"That's just a great shift by our line there," Marner said. "Keeping the puck moving quick, winning battles, being consistent on the puck and we got rewarded for it."
Marner's magic helped the Leafs turn a deficit into a lead against the NHL's top team.
"He puts you on the edge of your seat," said Matthews. "It kind of gives you a little momentum shift in the game when one of your top guys takes over like that."
Tuesday's second-period spark may end up being a turning point for Marner.
"He's got a little extra, like another gear offensively in terms of how his feet move but also with how his feet and his hands and his brain work together," Keefe observed. "They seemed to be in sync in that moment and that continued through the game."
Marner finished last season as one of the league's most dominant players with 76 points in his final 46 games. Everything came together after he returned from the COVID protocol on Jan. 15. And Marner looked more like that guy on Tuesday night.
"I thought it made a huge difference in the turn of the game for us in terms of time spent in the offensive zone and us being dangerous in the offensive zone," Keefe said. "That is what he is capable of doing and, for whatever reason, it's taken some time to get there. It was certainly nice to see and the hope is it will just continue and he'll build momentum from there. That's been the case for him in previous seasons so we have confidence that will continue."
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Marner has 13 points in 14 career games against the Penguins. He relishes the chance to go up against Sidney Crosby.
"In my eyes, that's who I see as the best," Marner said. "Obviously, [Connor] McDavid, Auston and a couple other guys have been really taking it to another level as well, but just Crosby overall. I mean, that's a guy I've always watched growing up and was always a guy you wanted to be on the ice against, play against, if you're lucky enough. It's always a cool one when you get to line up against him."
Crosby leads the Penguins with 15 points in 13 games this season.
"I don't know him that well," Keefe said, "but from the outside, you see how he trains, how he prepares, how serious he takes his craft, the ability that he has, and how competitive he is on the ice. All of those things add up to being a guy who seems like he could play forever and still be productive."
Friday will be the first of three meetings between the Leafs and Penguins this month.
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Matt Murray, who is working his way back from an adductor injury, was once again a full participant in practice.
"Felt really, really good," the 28-year-old goalie said of his second straight session with teammates. "I'm focusing one day at a time. Just doing things right. That's the biggest thing right now is making sure I'm fully ready to go before jumping in."
Erik Kallgren will start on Friday. Murray remains a possibility to play on Saturday against the Vancouver Canucks.
"I really don't have much of an update on Murr today," Keefe said. "It seemed like he was on the ice forever. I haven't gotten much from how his day went or how he is feeling — not that we were going to make the call today anyhow. It is a day-to-day thing. It seems like it was another good day for him. He stayed on the ice and got some extra work in even and all of that is positive."
Why did Murray stay out so late for extra work with goalie coach Curtis Sanford?
"It was a bit of a different practice structurally," he said of the main workout. "Not a ton of reps for us goalies. It was a lot of system stuff."
If Murray doesn't play on Saturday, then Keith Petruzzelli, 23, is expected to make his NHL debut. The 6-foot-6 goalie signed an entry-level deal on Saturday night after Ilya Samsonov went down with a knee injury.
What stands out to Murray?
"Other than his height? (smile) He's a big kid. But, for that size, he's incredibly athletic and agile. Reminds me a lot of myself, honestly. Growing up, being younger and the same kind of body type. Really good kid. Obviously, looks like he's eager to learn and eager to improve. It's been fun getting to know him a little bit."
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After firing a team-high five shots on net in Sunday's 3-1 win over the Carolina Hurricanes, Denis Malgin again made a positive impact on Tuesday. The 5-foot-9 winger won a battle with Mark Stone at the offensive blue line to keep the puck in, which allowed David Kampf to set up Liljegren for Toronto's first goal.
"The reality is that if Malgin keeps playing the way that he has, he is probably going to elevate in the lineup," Keefe said, "but at the same time, I am hesitant to do it because it is working so well in that role."
Malgin has complemented Kampf and Zach Aston-Reese well since that line was put together following the tough Western road trip, where they went 1-2-2.
"Malgin's inclusion in the group has brought another layer or level of skill that has kept them on offence even more and kept the puck away from good players," Keefe noted.
Malgin started the season on the second line with Tavares and William Nylander.
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Pierre Engvall continues to skate as the third-line centre.
"I have liked Pierre in the middle," Keefe said. "I know that his preference is still to be on the wing, but we need him in the middle right now. I have liked what he’s brought there for us."
Alex Kerfoot, Calle Jarnkrok and Nylander all took turns in the middle of that line this season before Engvall's audition. Why does Keefe like Engvall at centre?
"Just his speed that he has and the size," the coach explained. "If you are the opposition in the offensive zone, he is a hard guy to get through and to move around. He gets in the way. When he gets the puck, he does a really good job of skating it out of the zone and making a play on it. Those are the things that he brings there."
Keefe acknowledges that Engvall's ability to push the pace on offence and lead the forecheck is limited when he plays centre. He anticipates reuniting Engvall with Kampf at some point.
It's been hard to find the right mix on the third line, which currently features Michael Bunting and Jarnkrok on the wings. Keefe had to stop a drill at one point on Thursday because that line wasn't in the right position.
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Jarnkrok was able to get back on the ice after feeling under the weather and missing Wednesday's workout.
"Jarny, for me, has played well, and yet hasn't seemed to have found real chemistry with any sort of line," Keefe said. "He hasn't gotten into any real rhythm. Part of that is perhaps me moving him around. Part of it is just maybe him being new and finding his game. And yet, inside all of that, when I watch him, I like a lot of the things that he is doing. He has scored some great goals for us and produced well. He is responsible defensively and has done a good job on the penalty kill."
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Friday is the annual Hall of Fame Game in Toronto. This year's class includes twin brothers Henrik Sedin and Daniel Sedin.
"That connection's kind of one of a kind," noted Matthews.
Could Matthews imagine looking over and seeing his twin on the ice?
"With the moustache too, it'd be creepy," he said with a smile. "I always wanted a brother, but never got one. It's cool. They were unbelievable players, obviously."
Matthews has two sisters: Alexandria, who is three years older, and Breyana, who is five years younger.
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Lines at Thursday's practice:
Kerfoot - Matthews - Marner
Robertson - Tavares - Nylander
Aston-Reese - Kampf - Malgin
Bunting - Engvall - Jarnkrok
Simmonds, Clifford*
Rielly - Liljegren
Brodie - Holl
Giordano - Sandin
Benn
Kallgren
Petruzzelli
Murray
*Wearing a non-contact sweater
Power-play units at Thursday's practice:
QB: Rielly
Flanks: Matthews, Marner
Middle: Nylander
Net front: Tavares
QB: Sandin
Flanks: Kerfoot, Malgin
Middle: Robertson