Red Wings vs. Maple Leafs: Updates, Projected Lines and Keys to the Game

Updates

Nothing to see here really as the Red Wings blueline will have to dig deep into their reserves while Dennis Cholowski (upper-body), Trevor Daley (upper-body), Jonathan Ericsson (upper-body) and Mike Green (infection) sit this one out. On the other end, the Maple Leafs seem to have a clean bill of health as they take to the ice once again as William Nylander continues to mull over dollars and cents.

On the other side of the ice:

Projected Lineups

Red Wings

Forwards

Justin Abdelkader — Dylan Larkin — Anthony Mantha
Gustav Nyquist — Andreas Athanasiou — Thomas Vanek
Tyler Bertuzzi — Frans Nielsen — Michael Rasmussen
Darren Helm — Christoffer Ehn — Luke Glendening

Defense

Danny DeKeyser — Filip Hronek
Libor Sulak — Joe Hicketts
Niklas Kronwall — Nick Jensen

Goalies

Jimmy Howard
Jonathan Bernier

Maple Leafs

Forwards

Patrick Marleau — Auston Matthews — Kasperi Kapanen
Zach Hyman — John Tavares — Mitch Marner
Par Lindholm — Nazem Kadri — Connor Brown
Josh Leivo — Frederik Gauthier — Tyler Ennis

Defense

Morgan Rielly — Ron Hainsey
Jake Gardiner — Nikita Zaitsev
Travis Dermott — Martin Marincin

Goalies

Frederik Andersen
Garret Sparks

Keys to the Game

Keep those Legs Moving

It’s no secret the Leafs boast one of the youngest forward groups in the entire NHL and have been explosive offensively out of the gate — 20 goals for through four games leads the league. If the Wings want any chance in this one, they will need the likes of Athanasiou and Larkin to utilize their speed and exploit the Leafs defense to create scoring chances. They don’t have the same playmakers on their bench, but the Wings can stay in this game by skating with the Leafs.

Stay out of the Box

Look, it’s simple. Don’t be complacent with the puck in your own end and make the smart passes through the neutral zone. The Wings are dressing a young blueline tonight and it’s important to make quick, smart decisions in the defensive zone. If they get lazy and overwhelmed, then penalties start to happen. The Leafs are atop the league with a 50% powerplay success rate so far this season, so the more time spent in the sin bin creates a recipe for disaster.

Strong Net Presence

If Andersen gets the nod for the Leafs, then it will be key to be in his kitchen all night long. The Danish dandy saw more rubber than any goalie in the NHL last season and it will be important to make him feel uncomfortable in that crease. This is where Bertuzzi, Mantha and Rasmussen come into play by using their size and determination to pester Andersen throughout the game and keep their defensive core busy.