Craig Berube shook things up Wednesday.
The Maple Leafs head coach made two changes at forward for Game 5 of Toronto’s second-round playoff series against the Florida Panthers. Berube brought winger Nick Robertson and centre David Kampf down from the press box and into the action.
Calle Jarnkrok and Pontus Holmberg were scratched. Robertson, who last played in Game 2 of the opening round, had four goals and two assists when coming back into the lineup during the regular season. Kampf dressed for the first time since April 2 when he was injured against the Panthers. Robertson warmed up on the left wing with Max Domi and Bobby McMann, while Kampf centred the fourth line between Scott Laughton and Steven Lorentz. Berube said following Wednesday’s morning skate any roster moves would be tactical — and not injury-related — with the best-of-seven matchup between Atlantic Division rivals tied 2-2.Leafs defenceman Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who missed Tuesday’s practice with an illness, was good to go for Game 5 at Scotiabank Arena.Hockey Preview: What to expect ahead of the NHL SeasonThe Panthers, meanwhile, were minus winger Evan Rodrigues after he took a big hit from Ekman-Larsson — the play resulted in an interference penalty — in Game 4.Jesper Boqvist, a healthy scratch the last two games and without a goal since Jan. 25, drew in on Florida’s top line alongside Aleksander Barkov and Sam Reinhart. The Leafs jumped out to a 2-0 series lead with consecutive home victories before the defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers held serve on their turf, including a suffocating 2-0 victory Sunday where Toronto struggled to create offence. Prior to Wednesday’s lineup swaps, Berube hadn’t made any tweaks to his forward group or defence corps since veteran winger Max Pacioretty replaced Robertson for Game 3 of Toronto’s first-round victory over the Ottawa Senators in the Battle of Ontario.Game 6 between the Leafs and Panthers goes Friday at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Fla. Game 7, if necessary, would be back in Toronto on Sunday.Toronto fans have been making video versions of the song “Wonderwall” by English rockers Oasis where they add goaltender Joseph Woll’s name to the lyrics.Police say nearly 200 tips have come in for missing Nova Scotia childrenWorld junior sex assault trial: Defence claims complainant had ‘clear agenda’ Mitch Marner isn’t interested in discussing the elbow he took to the back of the head from Florida defenceman Dmitry Kulikov in Game 4 that went uncalled. “It’s hockey,” said the Toronto winger. “Stuff happens fast. I don’t really care or talk about it. I’m just trying to go out there and do my thing.”McMann had gone 21 games without a goal dating back to the regular season entering Wednesday. The 28-year-old, who has one assist in the playoffs, last found the back of the net March 25. The Leafs haven’t got a lot of offensive production from its depth forwards this spring. Laughton, Jarnkrok, Lorentz and Holmberg had also all failed to score through 10 post-season contests ahead of Game 5.“The bottom-6 has really got to drive the pace of the game, the physical side of the game,” Berube said Wednesday morning. “Establish our game plan with our forecheck and how we want to check.Read
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