The Toronto Maple Leafs may be asking a little more from an unlikely source on Wednesday against the Seattle Kraken.
With Kirill Marchenko listed as day-to-day after an apparent lower-body injury - believed to be his left knee - Toronto’s forward group is getting thinner by the moment. Marchenko, who fell awkwardly Monday after a hit from Calgary Flames forward Yegor Sharangovich, bent his left leg and came up favoring the knee. He joins a growing injury list that already includes three forwards and two defensemen.
That means the Leafs will need more from players outside the usual spotlight, and Nick Paul stands out as one who has to answer the call.
Paul has been holding down Toronto’s second-line center job with John Tavares sidelined, but the offense hasn’t followed. Since Tavares went down on Oct. 15, Paul has managed one goal and no assists in six games, even with a bigger role and regular minutes alongside offensive weapons such as William Nylander.
A turnaround would be timely. MoneyPuck says the Paul-Marchenko-Nylander line has produced just one goal in seven games together, so the group is still waiting for a spark. Wednesday might be the place it finally happens.
The matchup offers some encouragement. Paul has three goals and no assists in his last seven games against the Kraken, while Nylander has been especially effective against Seattle with three goals and eight assists for 11 points in nine career games. Paul is also entering the night on a four-game point drought.
The 31-year-old Mississauga native has settled into the range of a 40- to 45-point player in two of his last three seasons, with injuries cutting into his last year in Tampa Bay. This season, though, he’s behind that pace. Through 14 games, Paul has two goals and three assists for five points, which projects closer to a 30-point pace.
Toronto could use a lift after Monday’s loss to the Calgary Flames snapped a four-game winning streak. The Leafs had the upper hand early in their all-time series with Seattle, winning seven of the first eight meetings, but the Kraken have evened things out lately by taking the last two.
If Toronto wants to get back on track, it may need a night from one of the guys who isn’t usually the headline act. Paul is one of them.
In Other News...
Maple Leafs Just Got A Kirill Marchenko Timeline Fans Needed
Kirill Marchenko gave Maple Leafs fans a little clarity on his status at a moment when the team could use it. The forward, sidelined by a lower-body injury, offered the update himself in an airport rather than waiting for the usual team communication, giving supporters a rare direct read on where things stand as Toronto moves deeper into November.
Marchenkos timing matters because the Leafs are heading into a busy stretch on the schedule, and any hint about when a key forward might be back can help frame the next few weeks. His comments also leave room for the teams official timeline to catch up, but for now Toronto at least has a rough window to circle while it waits on the rest of his recovery. [Read more 🡒]
Chris Tanevs Return Could Give The Leafs A Needed Blue Line Lift
Chris Tanevs return to practice in a red non-contact jersey is a welcome sign for a Maple Leafs blue line that has been thinned by injuries. Toronto has been looking for ways to steady the back end, and even a partial step forward from Tanev changes the conversation a bit, especially for a team that has needed more reliable minutes from its defense corps.
If the recovery continues to track in the right direction, the Leafs may not need to keep pushing as hard for outside help on defense in the short term. Tanevs progress has created a real possibility that Toronto can get by with a healthier internal option instead of treating the position as an ongoing emergency, which is exactly the kind of boost this group has been waiting for. [Read more 🡒]
Matthews Wing Is Suddenly A Real Maple Leafs Issue Again
Ahead of a stop in Seattle, Jim Hiller had to start reshuffling the Maple Leafs forward groups again, and the latest tweak puts Gavin McKenna next to Auston Matthews while Easton slides to another line. It is the kind of adjustment Toronto has been forced into more often lately, with injuries thinning the top of the lineup and pushing the fourth line into a bigger role than the team likely expected when the season started.
Hiller also leaned into the value of Nick Pauls versatility as the Leafs try to keep things steady through the absences, while Dakota Joshua and Chris Tanev remain in different stages of limbo. The challenge now is not just filling spots, but finding the right way to play against a Seattle team that brings a different kind of pressure than Calgary did in the previous game. [Read more 🡒]