“We’re not panicking in here.” —Mitchell Marner
TORONTO – While Leaf Nation blows its lid over the length of Michael Bunting’s three-game suspension, which arrived on the heels of a five-minute major and an ejection in Game 1, there could be a ripple effect.
Calle Järnkrok scored in Game 1 and will have a golden opportunity to take hold of Bunting’s vacated left wing spot on the Toronto Maple Leafs’ top line with Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner.
College kid Matthew Knies will be given a look lower in the lineup and take his first steps toward becoming a meaningful left-side fixture in this town.
And who knows where this leaves Bunting, an impending free agent whose earliest action won’t come until Game 5 (if necessary)?
Ask Nazem Kadri how a reckless hit at the most critical time of year can sit with Leafs management.
Our take: One or two games would’ve been sufficient, but Bunting hasn’t exactly endeared himself to officials. That his target, Erik Cernak, wasn’t anywhere near the puck and has suffered a significant injury worsened Bunting’s case.
“We knew he was going to get something. That’s what the league decided. So, press on,” Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said.
“I know Michael Bunting as well as anyone, so I don’t have an issue in terms of trusting him when it comes to (illegal hits). He has no history of such things.”
Some in the Leafs room want to swiftly turn the subject to the task at hand; others see his ban as a significant loss.
“It big,” said Alexander Kerfoot, now elevated to the second line. “He brings an element to our team that not many guys bring, and he’s been a staple in our lineup for the last two years. He fits in really well with those top guys, and we’re gonna miss him. Other guys are gonna have to step up.”
“He does his job very well of getting around that net and being a guy that gets in people’s faces,” Marner said. “Also very good at high tips, making plays off that, and making plays down low. So, that’s what you’ll miss. But we got a lot of guys in this dressing room who can come in and do a great job.”
Bunting’s headshot has left the Lightning without Cernak. Bet on ex-Leaf Zach Bogosian to draw in.
“I didn’t like it. It was away from the puck and got him right in the chin. It was pretty tough to watch,” Lightning defenceman Mikhail Sergachev said. “I’ve never seen Erik go down like that.”
All eyes on Samsonov
As excellent as Ilya Samsonov was in regular season, there was a reason the Maple Leafs have been in wait-and-see mode with the most intriguing RFA goaltender in the league.
Could he get it done in the playoffs, where his record sunk to 1-7 and his save percentage to .895 after Tuesday’s stinker?
Samsonov admitted he played like, um, poop, and we’re not certain a delayed Game 2 endorsement from Keefe helped his confidence.
For six months, he’s been great at home and fantastic facing high-danger chances. He was neither of those in Game 1 – but is determined to redeem himself ASAP and requested to practice Wednesday.
“We were gonna sort of cater the practice to what he wanted, as you normally would do coming off of a start. But he wanted to be in there,” Keefe said.
“To me, he was sending a message to the team about how focused he is. And I thought he had an excellent practice, as short as it was. And to me, he looks ready to get back at it.”
A Samsonov failure would also be a Kyle Dubas failure, as the GM bet Toronto’s fate on an injury-prone goalie (Matt Murray) and an unproven playoff goalie.
“The things we’re looking from him would be, how would he respond when things weren’t going well and how would he recover when he got into bad stretches like any young goaltender, and he’s done an excellent job of that,” Dubas said.
“Especially, he had that stretch mid-December, he bounced back strong in January. Then, if he’s had any games where he struggled, he’s right away been able to stop that and get it rolling the other way.”
Time to get ’er rolling.
Desperation is a heck of a weapon
Look no further than the four games Wednesday night.
Down 1-0 in their respective series, the Oilers, Stars and Panthers all started quickly and rebounded in fierce fashion to flip their best-of-sevens into best-of-fives. The Islanders, too, responded with a strong effort and may well have tied their series with Carolina were it not for fluke goals and a missed high stick in overtime.
“It might be an advantage to the team that lost the first game,” said Lightning coach Jon Cooper, now tasked with matching what should be the world’s most desperate hockey team right now.
“Be greedy. Go get the second one.”
If you ignore shootouts (and you should when talking playoffs), the Maple Leafs have not lost consecutive games since Jan. 14. They haven’t dropped consecutive home games since Nov. 11.
“We’ve bounced back really well,” Keefe reminded. “The emotions go both ways in a playoff series.”
Tampa is banking on a tougher opponent.
“They’re gonna play their hearts out,” Sergachev predicted. “I’m expecting them to push.”
Matt Knies, the playoff debut guy
Knies’s skates have gone for a spin on Scotiabank Arena ice only twice.
The third time will be in his playoff debut, sheltered nicely on Toronto’s third line alongside the defensively savvy Ryan O’Reilly and Noel Acciari.
Big night for a kid, who’s had more than his share of indelible moments this month. Knies’s parents, Miroslav and Michaela, are in town to take in their son’s postseason debut.
“I don’t think there’s any pressure on him. He’s not expected to come out here and save the world,” Keefe said. “You wanna talk about pressure? He’s a top guy playing for a national championship (for Minnesota, two weeks ago) in front of 18,000 or 19,000 people. He’s just coming here, just doing his part, and that’s really it.
“He’s played in pressure situations before. This is not one of them. It’s a different situation. It’s a challenging situation. But he’s got no pressure.”
Ian Cole may beg to differ.
The veteran Tampa defenceman is about to play his 112th playoff game and took a moment to think back to his own playoff debut.
“Very nerve-racking. Just try not to screw up,” Cole said, smiling.
“Pretty much still like that.”
If you don’t know, now Jeannot
Tanner Jeannot will draw back into the Lightning lineup, crazy as that is to believe after witnessing his leg-bending injury a couple weeks back on Long Island.
Perfect timing for coach Jon Cooper, who lost winger Michael Eyssimont in Game 1 due to a hard, high hit from Jake McCabe.
“He’s a physical specimen is what he is. He’s a guy that can make an impact just physically,” Cooper said of Jeannot, the club’s big deadline add.
“I’ll be honest. If you asked me if he’d be back in this first round, no chance. I’m sure you all saw what happened to him, and so it’s pretty impressive he’s back.”
Maple Leafs projected Game 2 lineup
Järnkrok – Matthews – Marner
Kerfoot – Tavares – Nylander
Knies – O’Reilly – Acciari
Aston-Reese – Kämpf – Lafferty
McCabe – Brodie
Giordano – Holl
Rielly – Schenn
Samsonov starts
Woll
