The Maple Leafs will have a different-looking defence core when they take on the Seattle Kraken on Thursday evening.
Toronto announced that they called up Max Lajoie prior to their morning skate at Scotiabank Arena. But what stands out is William Lagesson getting onto the second pairing alongside Jake McCabe.
The reason the defense core is the way that it is is because Toronto is missing Mark Giordano. He took a puck off the hand on Tuesday night against Florida. Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe said the veteran defender is out week-to-week with a broken finger.
"I think you'll see the pairs move around quite a bit," Keefe said following the Maple Leafs' morning skate on Thursday.
"With Lagesson, he's played both sides and we can move him about. You can, at different times, you can pair different people with (Conor) Timmins, Lagesson, and (Simon) Benoit have done a good job with us, so I think you'll see some of that."
Another lineup change is Bobby McMann coming into Toronto's lineup with Ryan Reaves likely being scratched vs. Seattle.
"McMann's done a good job for us and he's probably been out a little too long here for us and we want to get him back involved," Keefe said.
The Maple Leafs' projected starter for their game against the Kraken is Joseph Woll as he was the first goaltender off the ice at the morning skate.
Toronto is taking on a Seattle team that's fifth in the Pacific Division and are 2-2-1 in their last five games. Keefe says the challenge against a team like that is their defense.
"They're one of the best defensive teams in the league," said Keefe. "Their goaltending hasn't held up for them, but they've done a really good job of limiting chances against, they're very structured, they play hard and they play quick.
"Puck hasn't gone in the net for them to the same degree as it did maybe last year, but to me, when you watch them play, they look very similar."
Where to watch
For those in the Maple Leafs' region, you can catch the game on TSN4. For everyone else in Canada, the game will be streamed on Sportsnet+. In the United States, fans will be able to stream the game on ESPN+. For the rest of the world, the game can be found on NHL Live.
Puck drop is set for just after 7:00 p.m. ET.
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