The Toronto Maple Leafs continue their west-coast road trip and look for a fifth consecutive win as they take on the rebuilding Calgary Flames on Monday evening.
Fast Facts
| Puck Drop | October 26th @ 8:30 p.m. Scotiabank Saddledome, Calgary, AB |
| Broadcast | TV: Nope Radio: Sportsnet 590 The FAN Online: Sportsnet+ |
| Gameday Odds (Market Typical) | Maple Leafs -134, Flames +114 Maple Leafs -1.5 +175, Flames +1.5 -210 Goal Line 6.5 (Over -119, Under -101) |
About the Maple Leafs (7-4-2)
You can still feel a buzz in town after the Leafs’ exclamation point yet this season, a 7-2 thrashing of the Edmonton Oilers that felt as much like a revenge game for ex-Oilers and ex-Mike Babcock players as it did an actual competition between teams. That can often make follow-up games like these a little unnerving – are they going to take the win as momentum, or will they be burned out from spent adrenaline?
John Chayka talked to the media today and was firm in stressing a need for the team to improve defensively, not just by personnel but tactically and habitually. I think you always want to get better at everything, but this will be a good test as to whether the new front office and coaching staff have a good read how they plan on achieving that. Improving by way of getting units to work together to escape the defensive zone can be of benefit to your entire 200 foot game, but statements like this have come paired with a more old-school, stay at home approach from previous staffs which only seem to make their problems worse. Toronto isn’t exactly generating a ton of offence at 5v5 (23rd in both attempts and expected goals per hour), so there’s not a lot left to sacrifice here.
About the Calgary Flames (4-6-0)
The Flames are expected to have a tougher go at it this season, and their record is about what you’d expect as such. What’s less expected is that they’re on a little bit of a streak of their own right now, winning three straight and four of their last five after going 0-5 to start ths eason. The wins haven’t only come against felllow minnows, either, including the likes of Carolina and Minnesota.
In their last three games, they’ve allowed just four goals. One might think this is the start of the Dustin Wolf explosion we’ve been expecting for years, but no – his season’s actually started off quite terribly. This time, it’s Devin Cooley who has turned heads this week, stopping 100 of 104 shots. Plus, he’s been giving some of the most fascinating quotes in hockey lately.
Are the Flames happy with this? Maybe their scouts aren’t, but the coaches and players are here to win, so it makes sense that they’d want to keep riding the hot hand.
Projected Lineups
| Toronto Maple Leafs Lines | Calgary Flames Lines |
|---|---|
| Easton Cowan – Auston Matthews – Jack Roslovic Kirill Marchenko – Nick Paul – William Nylander Gavin McKenna – Colton Sissons – Vinni Lettieri Brandon Duhaime – Teddy Blueger – Zack MacEwen Jake McCabe – Darren Raddysh Morgan Rielly – Troy Stecher Dakota Mermis – Oliver Ekman-Larsson | Joel Farabee – Mikael Backlund – Matt Coranato Yegor Sharangovich – Morgan Frost – Aydar Suniev Matvei Gridin – Martin Pospisil – Ryan Strome Maxim Tsyplakov – Jonathan Castagna – Adam Klapka Kevin Bahl – Simon Nemec Jacob Middleton – Zach Whitecloud Yan Kuznetsov – Zayne Parekh |
| Starting Goalie: Sergei Bobrovsky 3-3-2, 3.09 GAA, 0.895 SV% Backing Up: Anthony Stolarz | Starting Goalie: Devin Cooley 3-2-0, 2.80 GAA, 0.911 SV% Backing Up: Sam Montembeault |
The Leafs don’t appear to be making any changes to the lineup other than swapping goalies. Reasonable, after winning against a contender by five.
Calgary’s lineup is about what you’d expect. Really, when you see the skaters, you get an idea as to why no one is expecting this team a lot of games. I’m personally excited to see Zayne Parekh be a full-time member of the NHL lineup – his older brothers played for me in the OJHL, and Zayne was an AP for us in his U16 year. Even outside of the personal connection, he’s one of the most dynamic up-and-coming defencemen in the sport, and I can’t wait for when it starts to click for him at this level. Mikael Backlund is a game-time decision for the Flames but is currently expected to play.
Last Matchup
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Quick paragraph – link to previous recap if it exists
Injuries Of Note
We got a few injury updates as well from Chayka’s availablity. Chris Tanev was involved in morning skate but was wearing a non-contact jersey. John Tavares is skating on his own, but remains week-to-week. Dakota Joshua has finished his conditioning stint with the Marlies – we’ll talk more about that tomorrow. Most interesting but likely the least attached to stakes, Max Domi is skating on his own. There’s still a lot of uncertainty about his future, but it’s nice to hear he can be on the ice.
The Flames are without Jonathan Huberdeau (hip, indefinitely) and Samuel Honzek (lower-body, week-to-week).
Streaks Of Note
- The Maple Leafs have absolutely crushed this head-to-head over the past five years, winning nine of ten games since November 2021. Their lone loss in this stretch was a 5-2 defeat in Calgary on January 2022.
- Rarely do we get a low-scoring affair here – their last six games against each other have all featured six or more goals.
- Calgary-born William Nylander has points in 12 consecutive games against the Flames. He’s torched them over the years, producing 36 points in 26 games.
- Auston Matthews remains the Leafs’ ten-game leader in goals (8) assists (10) and points (18). Jack Roslovic has their most shots taken in that stretch with 30. Every dressed Leafs forward now has a goal in their last ten!
- Over in Calgary, Aydar Suniev has the hottest stick on the team with three goals in seven games. Joel Farabee leads the team with seven assists and nine points in ten games – a big jump out of the gate for someone who had 18 assists and 38 points last year.
Early Thoughts
These are always some of the toughest games to judge – the trap game after a huge win. Will the Leafs use the Edmonton blowout as a momentum builder, or will they be in a state of adrenaline burnout? Hopefully the day’s gap in betwen without significant travel has given them a chance to recharge while still staying eager. This is also their last chance to leave an impression in the Saddledome, as Calgary changes arenas next year. May as well make it count!
