Predicting Maple Leafs Game 5 Lineup

The defense is just fine, and those pairings should remain intact. The problem is that their bottom-six forward group is struggling. Their offense comes entirely from their top two lines, with some help from the blue line. It can't continue in Game 5, so Berube will likely adjust his forward lines for the contest. Four players on their third and fourth lines, Calle Jarnkrok, Steven Lorentz, Pontus Holmberg, and Bobby McMann, have a single point in the postseason. Each of those four players is a candidate to come out of the lineup with Toronto desperately needing a win.

David Kampf and Nick Robertson are the two likeliest options to enter the lineup. Robertson is the best offensive option among their healthy scratches. The 23-year-old former second-round pick recorded a career best 15 goals during the regular season, but has been out of the lineup since Game 3 against the Ottawa Senators in Round One.

Kampf brings a feisty element, but less scoring potential. Over the course of his career, he's been a five-to-10-goal scorer, but has earned his keep as a dependable defensive presence and penalty killer. He's been out for nearly two months with an injury, but that will likely end in Game 5.

If the Leafs want to get wild, they have the ultimate wild card in enforcer Ryan Reaves. He's been a healthy scratch most of the season, but his presence could make a difference with the tempers rising.

Berube has options, and maybe too many are a bad thing. What's clear is he must make a few tweaks to get the Leafs back in front of their series. If I were making that call, I'd bench forwards Calle Jarnkrok and Pontus Holmberg. In their place, Nick Robertson and David Kampf would draw in. Robertson would run on the third line with the express purpose of creating offensive chances. Kampf can help mitigate the loss of Jarnkrok, but the swap feels as close to a one-for-one exchange as the Leafs could make.