With Mitch Marner signed, Leafs Head Coach Mike Babcock must be elated to know that another of his key pieces will be in the lineup for the season opener against the Ottawa Senators on October 2nd.
The same cannot be said for left-winger Zach Hyman and defenseman Travis Dermott, who are both expected to begin the season on the IR.
Babcock began tinkering with his lines on Saturday and looks to have come to a decision on who will fill Hyman's shoes on the top line. It appears that Kasperi Kapanen has won the lottery as he will begin the season with John Tavares and the aforementioned Marner.
The 2nd line, being dubbed line 1B, will consist of Andreas Johnsson, Auston Matthews and William Nylander.
It is expected that once Zach Hyman returns from injury (knee), he will assume his spot on the left side on the top line, while Kapanen will slide down to the 3rd line to take up mantle alongside newcomers, Ilya Mikheyev and Alexander Kerfoot, the latter of whom apparently blew the Leafs away yesterday with his foot speed on full display.
No word yet on who will be pencilled in as the 4th line wingers for Jason Spezza, as there are several candidates who are currently battling for those positions in camp. Trevor Moore stands a good chance to land one of those spots.
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