After Wednesday’s practice, head coach Sheldon Keefe discussed the decision to field William Nylander at center in practice, the status of John Tavares and Pierre Engvall for opening night and the competition at camp ahead of the final two games of preseason.
Practice Lines – October 5th
Sheet lines from practice 5./22. Oct
Bunting-Matthews-Marner
Engvall-Kerfoot-Jarnkrok
Robertson-Nylander-Malgin
AstonReese Combat AubeKubel
Extras: Simmonds, Gaudette, Steeves, Holmberg, CliffordReilly-Brodie
Muzzin Holl
Giordano Sandin
Kral Metemurray
Samson
Kalgren— David Alter (@dalter) October 5, 2022
What made you decide to try William Nylander at the Center?
Keefe: Willy has done this before and I think he has the ability to do it. To be honest, I wouldn’t read too much into it. If you break it down somehow, it’s sort of a placeholder for John in his place. There are these elements to it.
I think it’s important for Willy to get some reps through camp and all that. He plays center sometimes. We could use him there in the last preseason game we play. We’ll see how the rest of the week goes and what John’s recovery looks like. From there we will make some decisions.
Actually I wanted to see Engvall, Kerfoot and Jarnkrok today. It was only natural to put Willy there.
Nylander took some faceoffs on penalties. That used to be Jason Spezza’s job. Do you have an opening for a right hander there?
Keefe: Yes, we’re doing that. Willy has been a good right-handed lead option throughout his career. He hasn’t put many of them in the defensive zone but we want to see if he can expand his role and commitment in penalty shootouts.
It’s important to have a faceoff on the right side. We also have Jarnkork’s Complement. This can help. David Kampf is doing a pretty good job for us despite being offside there. It is important to have additional options.
In the case of John Tavares, is there a chance he could be ready for the start of the season?
Keefe: I don’t think I’ve ruled that out, but it all depends on his recovery. Today was a really positive day for him. Obviously it would go in terms of the set plan that he would not be available but what his body is telling him will dictate that sooner or later. It will all be part of it.
We’ll just take it with him one day at a time. Today was a good day for him. Certainly I don’t expect him to be fully up to speed this week. This streamlines the timeline pretty well for [opening night].
Is there more clarity on Pierre Engvall and if he might be available for opening night?
Keefe: It looks like this. He has to take some steps here. He will train with us again tomorrow. I think the point is he goes home with us tomorrow and I think he has an appointment later in the week that will set the table on whether he can get into a preseason game.
It’s going well but with his injury and the nature of the injury you just have to watch out and be careful.
Do you like where the group is now with one preseason game left for the main group?
Keefe: The boys want to play properly. We have a lot of guys here who have been playing together for a long time. You go through things in camp. We’ve made some adjustments to a few different things we plan to do as a team. Overall, many things are similar. Our structure and the way we want to play are pretty similar.
The guys are ready to just keep going and play right I think. I thought we got a lot out of training today. It was a really good day – the first time we also had a group which added extra competitiveness and pace. The execution was higher. I liked that very much.
When we get out of here I think it’s good that we still have two games left. The first game in Detroit will offer a lot of opportunities for guys fighting for places. Back in Toronto we expect it to be closer to our group.
With all that said – and although we made some decisions on line combinations and other things today – there are still positions up for grabs and guys who are still competing. We have a week and two preseason games left here. A lot can and probably will change. That’s just nature.
So we shouldn’t put too much emphasis on the players in the non-main group gray jerseys?
Keefe: Of course there are things we want to look at. There’s something to it, of course, but there’s still a competition going on here. It doesn’t matter if it’s the lads who have to finish really strong games this week, or a great week of training, or injuries and whatever, a lot of things can change.
As I said the other day, this is a competitive camp like I had during my time here. I think back to the group we had around this time last season. We had the same number of forwards out there. I don’t think so many guys could start the season with us. This year is different. That’s healthy for our club.
How good do you think this team can be given what you have?
Keefe: It’s no secret that we have a good club. I think we’ve established ourselves as an elite team in the NHL. I expect we will be again.
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