Sunday, December 10, 2017

Leafs Notes: Weekly Preview 12/10/17-12/16/17

The Toronto Maple Leafs look to keep pace with the Tampa Bay Lightning for first place in the Atlantic Division.

The Leafs start their week off by facing Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers. Toronto then travels to Philly on Tuesday night to face a well rested Flyers team. The Leafs then travel to Minnesota to face the Wild on Thursday night. Toronto will end their week with a game against the Red Wings in Detroit.

The Leafs will need to stop Connor McDavid as they face the Oilers tonight at home. It seems if you slow down or stop him in a game then the Oilers offense gets stopped. The Maple Leafs will need to watch the Oilers defensemen since they can put up some points especially Darnell Nurse and Kris Russell. Toronto will need to take advantage of one of the worst penalty kills in the League by scoring some goals while on the man advantage. The Leafs will need to get a good game from backup goalie, Curtis McElhinney since he hasn't seen much action this year. The Maple Leafs will need to get the first goal of the game and have a solid defensive effort with no Auston Matthews and the backup goalie in tonight.

The Oilers will need to get the first goal of the game and keep attacking. Edmonton will need to play team defense and get a forecheck game established early. The Oilers will need to avoid the penalty box since the Leafs have a very good power play that can be dangerous. Edmonton will want to have the lead entering the final period since they haven't lost a game when leading after two periods this year. The Oilers will need to get a good game from the backup goaltender and he will need to make some key saves since the Leafs can get pucks to the net.

Toronto needs to find a way to stop the recently red hot Michael Raffl, who has scored five goals in his last eight games after scoring zero in his previous 42. The Leafs will need to get some good goaltending the Flyers can also get some pucks on net. The Maple Leafs will need to have a solid, road effort and get scoring from the depth lines. Toronto will need to stay out of the penalty box since the Flyers have a good power play. They will also need to watch the Philly defense since they like to join the play in the offensive zone, and will pinch to keep a play alive.

The Flyers will need to keep the balanced scoring going that they have had the past three games. Philadelphia will ned to get the first goal of the game and build off of it. The Orange and Black will need to keep attacking and establish a good forecheck game early in the game to make the Leafs defend. The Flyers will need to limit their mistakes especially in the neutral zone since the Leafs have some good transition speed. Philly will need to keep James van Riemsdyk and Mitch Marner in check.

The Leafs will need to get plenty of traffic in front of the Wild goalies because if they can see it then they will likely stop it. Toronto will need to establish a good forecheck early in the game. The Maple Leafs will need to get the first goal of the game and take the home crowd out of the game. The Leafs will need to stay out of the penalty box and find a way to stop Jason Zucker and Eric Staal.

The Wild need to get some sustained offensive pressure to stop the balanced attack of the Leafs. Minnesota will need to play solid defensive game, and have the forwards make sure that the gap isn't too big. The Wild need to get plenty of traffic in front of the net, and get the first goal of the game. Minnesota will need to be better in the first period of the game since they have been outscored by a goal in first periods of games. The Wild are going to need to find a way to stop Patrick Marleau and William Nylander.

The Maple Leafs finish off their week with a divisional game against the Detroit Red Wings. The Leafs will need to play a solid road game and limit their mistakes with the puck. Toronto will need to find a way to keep Dylan Larkin and Anthony Mantha off the board since they are the two leading scorers on the team. The Leafs will need to get traffic in front of the net and get pucks on net. The Leafs needs to stay out of the penalty box, and keep playing the way they've been play all season at even strength.

The Red Wings will need to play better while at even strength since they have been outscored 66-51 so far. They will need to play a discipline game, and stay out of the penalty box. Detroit will need to watch the transition game of the Leafs since they have plenty of speed. The Red Wings will need to limit their mistakes and play a solid defensive game.



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