The Toronto Maple Leafs will be a busy bunch this week with four games in six days. They will look to keep pace with the Tampa Bay Lightning, who are first in the Atlantic Division.
The Leafs will take on the lowly Arizona Coyotes on Monday night at home. They will then travel to Florida to take on the Panthers, who are seventh in the Atlantic Division. Toronto will visit the Hurricanes on Friday. The Maple Leafs will end their week on Saturday with a rematch of last year's playoffs and face the Capitals at home.
Toronto wants to make sure that they don't look past the Coyotes on Monday night, Yes, the Coyotes are the worst team in the League, but you never know when a team is going to come play. The Maple Leafs are going to have to use their speed since the Coyotes have some of their own players that can fly around on the ice. The Leafs need to cash in on their power play chances because the Coyotes aren't the best penalty killing team around. Toronto needs to get pucks on net when they have the chance since the Coyotes tend to let up a lot of goals. The Maple Leafs will need to find a way to contain Clayton Keller, who leads Arizona in goals and points, while Oliver Ekman-Larsson leads the team in assists.
The Coyotes are going to want to establish the forecheck early in this game along with their cycle game because the longer they make the Leafs defend, the better their chances. Arizona will need to be sure to get traffic and bodies in front of Frederik Andersen since he is coming off of a week where he was named the NHL's second star of the week. The 'Yotes will need to stay out of the penalty box since the Leafs have a dangerous power play, and they will also need to find a way to play a solid defensive road game. The Coyotes are going to need to find a way to stop Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner.
The Maple Leafs will need to be sure to get off to a fast start against the Panthers on Wednesday night. They will want to get the first goal of the game, and keep attacking. Toronto needs to find a way to keep Jonathan Huberdeau, Aleksander Barkov, Evegny Dadonov and Vincent Trocheck in-check since they are the main point producers for the team. The Leafs need to get another good start from the goalies since the defense is going to allow chances and turn the puck over. Toronto needs to make sure that they play with discipline because the Panthers can be dangerous on the power play especially their first unit.
Florida will need to get the first goal of the game to keep the home crowd in the game. The Panthers need to get off to a better start in this game since they've been outscored 16-13 in the first period of games, and the Leafs have scored 28 first period goals. Florida will need to establish the fore-check early and be aggressive by trying to keep the puck in the offensive zone. The Cats will need to pressure the puck carrier since the Leafs will turn the pucks over whether its in the neutral zone or their own zone. Florida will need to have a lead entering the third period since they only have two third period comebacks in 11 chances. They also should try to contain Nazem Kadri and James van Riemsdyk, who are second and third in points on the team.
The Leafs need to play a solid road game against the Hurricanes, avoid the sloppiness and turnovers. Toronto will need to be good while at even strength since the Hurricanes tend to outscore their opponents when five-on-five. The Maple Leafs will need to take advantage of their power play opportunities since the Canes aren't the best penalty killing teams on home ice. Toronto needs to have some consistency within the game and not have a lapse where they aren't focused. The Leafs will also need to contain the red-hot Teuvo Teravainen, who was named the NHL's first star of the week.
The Hurricanes will need to watch out for the Leafs defensemen joining the play in the offensive zone. Carolina should try to get the first goal of the game to keep the home crowd in it, and because they play better when they score the first goal of the game. The Hurricanes will need to be better on special teams especially on the penalty kill since the Leafs have a really good power play. Carolina will need to figure out a way to stop the balanced lineup of the Leafs, and a good way to do that would be to make the Leafs defend. The goalie is going to need to come up big for the Hurricanes since the Leafs are scoring almost four goals per game played.
Toronto will end their week with a rematch of last year's first round of the postseason against the Capitals. The Maple Leafs will need to find a way to contain Alex Ovechkin and Evgeny Kuznetsov. Toronto will need to get plenty of traffic around the opposing net for deflections and second chances. The Leafs will also need to feed off the energy of the crowd and get off to a fast start. The special teams of the Leafs are going to need to be good as will the goaltending.
The Capitals will need to figure out a way to stop the balanced attack of the Maple Leafs. They will also need to be aware of the speed of the Leafs. The Capitals will need for pressure the puck carrier and force turnovers. Washington will also need to play a physical game, but be smart of when to hit and when not to make the hit. The Caps will also need to establish a fore-check and cycle game to have some sustained offensive zone pressure.
