> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.pensionplanpuppets.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Preview: Canadiens at Leafs for the Home Opener - URL: https://www.pensionplanpuppets.com/preview-canadiens-at-leafs-for-the-home-opener/ - Published: 2023-10-11T15:30:32.000Z - Updated: 2023-10-11T15:30:32.000Z - Description: Montréal Canadiens @ Toronto Maple Leafs 07:00 PM at Scotiabank Arena Watch on: TVAS, SN - Author: Cathy Squires - Tags: Game Coverage ### Montréal Canadiens @ Toronto Maple Leafs 07:00 PM at Scotiabank Arena Watch on: TVAS, SN The Leafs last real game was months ago, and best forgotten. The Leafs have a record of 0-0-0 so far this season. The Montréal Canadiens last played a preseason away game on October 7 against the Ottawa Senators. The Canadiens won by a score of 6-4, and their current regular season league record is 0-0-0. ### Them Ah, the Habs. We meet again, and it's well, it's been too many years, too many games, too much of you vs us and us vs you and we're like a couple who've now been divorced longer than they were married. We both still hate Boston and that's the only thing we have left in common. #### Lines Guillaume Lefrançois via [Daily Faceoff](https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/teams/montreal-canadiens/line-combinations/?ref=pensionplanpuppets.com) Cole Caufield - Nick Suzuki - Josh Anderson Alex Newhook - Kirby Dach - Juraj Slafkovsky Tanner Pearson - Sean Monahan - Brendan Gallagher Rafaël Harvey-Pinard - Jake Evans - Jesse Ylönen Michael Matheson - David Savard Kaiden Guhle - Johnathan Kovacevic Jordan Harris - Arber Xhekaj Jake Allen - confirmed starter Sam Montembeault or Cayden Primeau - unconfirmed ### Us It's Fraser Minten Day! His family are coming in to watch his debut, and this is going to be so cool. The rest of the lineup is now very old hat after this century's longest training camp. > Fraser Minten says he's handling the nerves of his pending NHL debut by "staying present." The 19-year-old exudes a maturity well beyond his years. [pic.twitter.com/NZCSrrKczO](https://t.co/NZCSrrKczO?ref=pensionplanpuppets.com) > > — Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) [October 11, 2023](https://twitter.com/reporterchris/status/1712122361867039091?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=pensionplanpuppets.com) #### Lines Tyler Bertuzzi - Auston Matthews - Mitch Marner Max Domi - John Tavares - William Nylander Matt Knies - Fraser Minten - Calle Järnkrok Ryan Reaves - David Kämpf - Noah Gregor Morgan Rielly - TJ Brodie Jake McCabe - John Klingberg Mark Giordano - Timothy Liljegren Ilya Samsonov - does not need to be confirmed Joe Woll ### The Game Who even knows what will happen in a hockey game? Maybe a team wins with a bad goalie or loses with a good one. Maybe the puck goes in or it doesn't. When we watch the outcome, we are watching all that goes into the game on purpose as well as all the random stuff that you can't plan for, you just endure. But the planning part is what training camp is all about. Here is some analysis about defensive process from training camp. Not defence as a discussion of defenders only and not results where transitions skills in the neutral zone get stirred together with defensive zone play, but the concept that underlies the in-zone defending. This is the first pair of tweets, riffing off some comments by various media about defensive styles: > And as [@jtbourne](https://twitter.com/jtbourne?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=pensionplanpuppets.com) said last week, it looks like [#LeafsForever](https://twitter.com/hashtag/LeafsForever?src=hash&ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=pensionplanpuppets.com) are actually switching to the "Hybrid" D-Zone that Tampa used to win two cups! > > Now when the puck goes low to high, players attach to closest player and get into "man on man" coverage, Focus on D1 & F1 Difference. [pic.twitter.com/0QMbOjnXMY](https://t.co/0QMbOjnXMY?ref=pensionplanpuppets.com) > > — Andrew Brewer (@Abrew2014) [October 11, 2023](https://twitter.com/Abrew2014/status/1712092835397189907?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=pensionplanpuppets.com) If you play the little videos, you can see that the top system chooses to keep the defenders at net-front and relies on the F1 (often the centre, but not necessarily the centre) to do the big positional move to get back to his zone. Watching Tampa beat Nashville, a much weaker team, by controlling the zone in this way worked for them dramatically well at first, but then the Predators dominated for a period before the third period full of power plays decided the game. One game is not the proof of any concept, but perhaps it's this confidence in a new defensive system that has Tampa seemingly content to use the weakest pair of goalies in the NHL. You certainly can't fault the effectiveness of the system Vegas used to nullify Florida in the playoffs last year. So now go to the Leafs version, said to be what Tampa used to do, which was obviously hugely successful. I talked in an article this year about defending in very abstract terms – dancing styles and pipe bands and positional discipline vs reactive play. And I said then that when the Leafs do things that lead to positive defensive outcomes, they are active things – puck stealing, zone exits, board battles, etc. > The advantage of the "Hybrid" is it allows you to pressure the puck quicker and potentially kill plays earlier to get out of your zone...this works best when roster is better than opponent > > The danger is teams that have motion can pull players away from the net, and can be tiring > > — Andrew Brewer (@Abrew2014) [October 11, 2023](https://twitter.com/Abrew2014/status/1712094662599602275?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=pensionplanpuppets.com) In an animation, this style looks like it should suit the Leafs, not just because they are often a better team, but because they have some forwards who can think this kind of defensive play, but who don't do well at all with go there, don't move, cover that zone and be a man about it – a heavy paraphrase of something I saw today about St. Louis. This is the Bourne article, by the way where he shows a failure of execution from a forward, but talks about the strengths of the centres who will usually be tasked with this handoff of coverage and change of responsibility: [Structural things to watch with the Maple Leafs this seasonThough the Maple Leafs defeated their first-round demons last season, it looks like Sheldon Keefe and the coaching staff are implementing different strategies heading into 2023-24\. Justin Bourne takes a look at what to watch out for.![](https://www.sportsnet.ca/sn_favicon.ico)Sportsnet| October 6, 2023, 12:53 PM![](https://www.sportsnet.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/leafs-1-1040x572.jpg)](https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/structural-things-to-watch-with-the-maple-leafs-this-season/?ref=pensionplanpuppets.com) Much like a defender joining the offensive play, this positional agnosticism can lead to viewers seeing the initial choice – the defender moves up or the forward comes back to defend – as an individual error and the blame machine starts up. In both cases, you should expect the Leafs to be acting within their tactical brief when they do these things. So you have your assignment, track the F1 in defensive coverage and submit your report in the GDT! Go Leafs Go (follow your man)!