The Maple Leafs and Colorado Avalanche skated at Scotiabank Arena on Tuesday.
---
Chris Tanev is not happy that Leafs general manager John Chayka decided to hold him out of Sunday’s game for load management.
“Yeah, it is what it is,” the 36-year-old defenceman said. “I mean, don’t agree with it, but I understand where he’s coming from. Haven’t really been healthy for the last year, so I think he wants me to be able to play in January and February and March. So, yeah, I guess being available during that stretch will benefit the team and I do think John wants what’s best for me too as well.”
So, why does Tanev disagree with the plan?
“I want to play,” he said succinctly. “That’s why.”
Tanev has missed 80 games the last two seasons due to various ailments, including a spine issue last year. He has missed nine games due to injury already this season.
“Don’t go write that ‘Chris and John are having issues,’” Tanev stressed. “That’s not at all the case. I like John a lot. I respect John. I think obviously people are allowed to have different opinions.”
After defenceman Morgan Rielly went down with a lower-body injury during Saturday’s loss to the Montreal Canadiens, Tanev attempted to convince the Leafs to let him play on Sunday against the New Jersey Devils.
“I tried multiple times, but obviously didn’t work,” he said.
Tanev could only watch as the Leafs fell 4-0 to the Devils. It was the team’s fifth loss in the past six games.
“I am not surprised that Chris Tanev wants to play hockey every single night,” said coach Jim Hiller. “He just is a warrior. That’s been well documented. So, we understand his frustration. We’d like to have him every night but there’s a plan in place to protect him and the team.”
“I know Tanny is a tough guy,” said Colorado Avalanche centre Nazem Kadri, who played with Tanev in Calgary from 2022-24. “Sometimes he’s a guy that you have to be like, ‘Hey, maybe take a step back.’ So, I’m not surprised by that, and I’m not surprised he wants to play either.”
Tanev will be back in the lineup for Tuesday’s tilt against the Avalanche as the Leafs look to snap a three-game skid.
“The way he lays his body on the line every night is just up there with the best,” said winger William Nylander. “And the leadership he has in the locker room, it’s huge. So, obviously you want him to play every game.”
It’s unclear when Tanev will be forced to sit out again.
“You guys will see, I guess, as it comes,” Tanev said with a smile. “But so will I.”
“I don’t know exactly,” Hiller said. “You know, like anything, there’s a plan and then you go through and you see how people react and how the body reacts, all those kinds of things.”
---
Rielly will miss a second straight game on Tuesday. He is listed as day-to-day.
Forward Colton Sissons is out week-to-week after suffering a lower-body injury on Sunday.
“He’s just so sound in all areas,” said centre John Tavares. “You can really trust him in every situation. Great experience. Really intelligent player, understands the game really well ... He’s just someone you can really trust and really consistent and that presence is massive. It’s challenging, but more opportunity for other guys. We want to be a team that has a lot of depth and that next-man-up mentality. Tough skates to fill, but excited for the guys that are going to get the opportunity to fill in the role he plays for us.”
Jack Roslovic skated on the top line beside Auston Matthews on Tuesday morning and appears ready to return to the lineup after being a late scratch on Sunday due to a nagging lower-body injury.
“I haven’t talked to them since we’ve gotten off the ice, but he got through it, and I didn’t see any issues,” said Hiller. “We competed a little bit at the end and he was in there, so that looks good.”
---
The Leafs called up winger Ryan Tverberg from the Toronto Marlies on Tuesday. The 24-year-old will start his third career NHL game on the Leafs second line beside Tavares and Nylander. What did he think when he saw his line assignment?
“I was kind of like, okay, like, oooh,” the Richmond Hill, Ont. native said with a big smile. “Alright. Alright, sure. That’ll be fun. Yeah.”
Why is Tverberg getting such a prominent spot in the lineup?
“He can be first on the forecheck,” Hiller said. “I think he can loosen some pucks up and try to really let John and Willy get in there and find some secondary pucks. That’s just it. He’s a F1 forechecker. Lots of speed, and a big engine.”
“I know the type of engine he brings and the motor he can play with shift to shift,” Tavares said. “[We] talk about that pace and puck pressure and ability to make it hard on your opponent so excited for him and excited to play with him.”
Tverberg, who led the stretch at the end of Tuesday’s skate, made his NHL debut late last season.
“He’s got speed, poise with the puck, strong in battles and stuff,” Nylander said. “Watched him a lot through the Marlies playoffs and he’s a great player, so it will be fun to play with him tonight.”
Tverberg helped the Marlies win a Calder Cup last season. Nylander’s younger brother, Alex, was also on that team.
Toronto’s second line has been struggling lately with Hiller experimenting with various different combinations. Gavin McKenna was with Tavares and Nylander on Sunday, but finished the night minus-three.
During Saturday’s game against the Canadiens, Nick Paul skated as the second-line centre between Tavares and Nylander.
“They probably didn’t generate enough,” Hiller acknowledged. “If we’re thinking the first night with Paul and the second night with Gavin, I just didn’t see enough offence generation from that line. We’re going to need that. That’s the change tonight. We’ll see if [Tverberg] can bring a little bit more to those guys.”
Tavares was playing his first games since suffering a lower-body injury on Oct. 15. He fired four shots on net against the Canadiens, but was held without a shot against the Devils.
“Not bad,” he said of his performance. “I got a lot better. Some things felt pretty good right away. You want to try to find that rhythm. The thing that’s a little more challenging is I never got into that feel, that rhythm [because] the injury happened pretty early.”
---
Kadri has lost nine straight games (0-7-2) against the Leafs. Does it feel that way?
“Honestly, I’m not sure it does,” the former Leaf said. “I know we won an overtime game in our building. Have we played nine games since then?”
Yes, Kadri’s teams have lost nine straight since that 5-4 overtime win by the Avalanche on Jan. 8, 2022. The London, Ont. native has lost six straight at Scotiabank Arena. Kadri hasn’t tasted victory in his homecoming game since before the COVID pandemic.
“That really means nothing to me,” he said with a wide smile. “So, every day is a great day to come here and it’s a fresh slate too. So, we’re looking to go 1-0 today.”
The Avalanche are looking to avenge a 6-3 loss at the hands of the Leafs last month in Denver.
“They kind of chewed us up off the rush last time,” defenceman Cale Makar recalled. “And even though I felt like we had good coverage at times, they always were finding those different seams to put it through us and ultimately score. So those are areas we can definitely tighten up tonight because they’re super good in small areas and can find those seams really easily.”
Nylander matched a career high with five points in that win over the Avalanche.
“He’s really good at changing the shape and style of his shot,” Makar noted. “So, as a defender, you gotta be ultra-aware. If I remember correctly, he caught a couple backdoor seams against us last time. The sneaky areas, he finds those pockets really well.”
---
McKenna picked up an assist in the win over the Avalanche last month.
“He looked awesome against us,” centre Nathan MacKinnon said of his fellow first overall pick. “I mean, the plays he makes, you can just tell his vision is incredible. You can just tell his vision, his awareness, as I player you definitely want to play with guys like that. So, they’re definitely lucky to have him.”
---
MacKinnon looked pretty good against the Leafs with two goals in the first period last month. He’s fifth in league scoring with 30 points in 18 games.
MacKinnon has also already engaged in two fights this season.
“Guys will push back on him at times and I think if that’s something he feels like he needs to do, so be it,” said coach Jared Bednar. “Obviously we don’t want him doing it all the time, because of the risks that come with that, but at some of those times, in those games, in those moments, it’s something that probably our team needed so he sees it as a little bit leadership as well and our team took it that way and responded on a few occasions.”
“He’s very competitive,” observed Tavares. “He teeters on that line and really uses that as fuel. His skillset is pretty special and pretty unique, but it always impresses me the motor he has, to be able to do it shift after shift with the minutes he plays ... He has an impressive motor.”
---
Makar is good to go despite leaving the team’s last practice on Sunday.
“I feel really good,” Makar confirmed after being a full participant in the Avalanche’s morning skate on Tuesday. “Ready to go. So, just kind of a weird thing. Pretty intense practice, so just wanted to make sure to take care of it right away and it seems like it feels good.”
---
Lines at Leafs skate:
Cowan - Matthews - Roslovic
Tverberg - Tavares - Nylander
Joshua - Paul - McKenna
Duhaime - Blueger - MacEwen
McCabe - Raddysh
Ekman-Larsson - Tanev
Mermis - Stecher
McWard
Bobrovsky starts
Stolarz