Day one of the new Leafs sees some new arrangements.
New-look Leaf lines and D with Jake McCabe and Sam Lafferty at practice today:
Bunting — Matthews — Marner
Tavares — O’Reilly — Nylander
Engvall — Kampf — Jarnkrok
Kerfoot — Acciari — Lafferty
Aston-ReeseRielly — Holl
McCabe — Brodie
Giordano — Liljegren
Sandin — Timmins— Jonas Siegel (@jonassiegel) February 28, 2023
Sam Lafferty, a right-shot, comes in on the right wing, moving Alex Kerfoot, a very versatile player and a left shot, to the left wing.
Zach Aston-Reese is the odd man out at this point.
The defence, well that’s confusing, because:
Leafs defence at practice
Brodie – McCabe
Rielly – Holl
Giordano – Liljegren
Sandin – Timmins @TSN_Edge— Mark Masters (@markhmasters) February 28, 2023
Both TJ Brodie and Jake McCabe shoot left, and both have played the right side in their careers. Putting them together could work in either configuration.
Morgan Rielly and Justin Holl have played together a great deal, and as long as no one expects them to shine defensively, it can work.
Mark Giordano and Timothy Liljegren have also been a successful pair and, of the two youngest defenders, it’s Liljegren that’s been trusted a bit more.
Rasmus Sandin and Conor Timmins sit out.
Remember: these aren’t just options for one practice, they are magical pair bonds that can never be broken. More permanent than marriage, this will how they will lineup forever.