Nicholas Robertson was in Zach Hyman's spot on a line with Auston Matthews and William Nylander at training camp after Hyman was unfit to participate.
Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said putting Robertson, an 18-year-old who has yet to play in an NHL game, in Hyman's spot was less about Robertson than it was about not wanting to disrupt the chemistry of the other three lines.
"It was a good chance to give Nick a chance to play with those guys and if it could help his confidence and experience, I thought that would be a good thing," Keefe said. "It was more so though about making sure we had consistency throughout the rest of the lines we wanted to maintain."
Robertson scored a shorthanded goal and forced a turnover that led to goal a by Matthews during a scrimmage.
"You saw him hounding the puck, those are intangibles to his game that don't get talked about enough," Keefe said. "That's a big part of his game. There's a lot of emphasis on his skill, shot and goal-scoring, but he has relentless work ethic, which is a real nice foundation for him."
Forward Mitchell Marner said Robertson earned the opportunity to skate with Matthews and Nylander, even if it is temporarily.
"He's come in with a rookie mentality and he gets on that ice and works 100 percent so it's great seeing that," Marner said. "He's pretty feisty and brings a lot of effort. He's definitely drawing eyes from a lot of guys on our team. You want to see young guys coming in bringing that intensity and fire every day."
The Maple Leafs will play the Columbus Blue Jackets in a best-of-5 qualifier series in Toronto beginning Aug. 2.
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