No. 4 Canadiens at No. 1 Maple Leafs
7 p.m. ET; CNBC, CBC, SN, TVAS
Montreal leads best-of-7 series, 1-0
The Toronto Maple Leafs will look to even the Stanley Cup First Round against the Montreal Canadiens in Game 2 at Scotiabank Arena on Saturday.
The Maple Leafs lost captain John Tavares when he sustained a concussion and knee injury in the first period of a 2-1 loss in Game 1 on Thursday. The forward will be out a minimum two weeks because of the knee and there is no timetable for a return relating to the concussion.
Coach Sheldon Keefe said the Maple Leafs will need to have a next-man-up mentality in Tavares' absence.
"One of the great things about the playoffs, frankly, is the opportunity to respond," Keefe said. "I think that's the great thing about the playoffs is that when the other team has an edge and the urgency rises a little bit more, you get the chance to really push back. I'm excited we have the chance to do that."
The Canadiens blueprint for the series was to clog up the neutral zone, play a physical game and not engage in a run-and-gun style that is advantageous to the speedy Maple Leafs. Montreal followed the plan to victory in Game 1 and gave up few second-chance opportunities. When it did, goalie Carey Price came up big and made 35 saves.
"We did a lot of good things last game, but I think we can still be better," Canadiens forward Nick Suzuki said. "The pace can be higher. With guys stepping up their games, I think we're in good shape."
Teams with a 2-0 lead are 330-51 (86.6 percent) winning a best-of-7 NHL playoff series, including 6-0 last season.
Here are three keys for Game 2:
1. Next man up for Maple Leafs
Forwards Alex Galchenyuk and Pierre Engvall will replace Tavares and Riley Nash, who made his Toronto debut in Game 1. Galchenyuk is projected to skate on the second line with William Nylander and Nick Foligno, who moves from wing to center. Engvall will play left wing on the third line with right wing Ilya Mikheyev and Alexander Kerfoot, who shifts from wing to center.
Galchenyuk, the No. 3 pick in the 2012 NHL Draft, scored 13 points (five goals, eight assists) in 26 games for the Ottawa Senators and Maple Leafs this season. He was acquired in a trade with the Carolina Hurricanes on Feb. 15, two days after he was traded to the Hurricanes by the Senators.
"The biggest thing that stood out, probably from the very first shift when he joined us during the season, is how hard he's worked and how much he's moved his feet," Keefe said.
2. Kotkaniemi gets his shot
Jesperi Kotkaniemi, a healthy scratch in Game 1, will be the center on the fourth line between Paul Byron and Artturi Lehkonen. He'll replace Jake Evans, who is out with an undisclosed injury.
Canadiens coach Dominique Ducharme said he's confident the refigured unit can have an impact.
"They have had success together, they have played together before and had some really strong games," he said. "I really liked Jesperi's week last week. We talked about him taking a step back and working on his game and getting ready for the playoffs, and we are confident with that line."
3. Maple Leafs power play against Canadiens penalty killing
The Canadiens won this battle in Game 1 and it proved vital in the visitors taking the lead in the series. Not only did Montreal's penalty kill hold Toronto without a goal in four chances on the man-advantage, it produced the winning goal thanks to forward Paul Byron's spectacular shorthanded individual effort with 7:16 remaining in the third period. Byron has scored 10 regular-season shorthanded goals in the NHL.
Canadiens projected lineup
Tomas Tatar -- Phillip Danault -- Brendan Gallagher
Tyler Toffoli -- Nick Suzuki -- Joel Armia
Corey Perry -- Eric Staal -- Josh Anderson
Paul Byron -- Jesperi Kotkaniemi -- Artturi Lehkonen
Carey Price
Scratched: Cole Caufield, Michael Frolik, Alex Belzile, Erik Gustafsson, Alexander Romanov, Xavier Ouellet, Cayden Primeau
Injured: Jake Evans (undisclosed)
Maple Leafs projected lineup
Zach Hyman -- Auston Matthews -- Mitchell Marner
Alex Galchenyuk -- Nick Foligno -- William Nylander
Pierre Engvall -- Alexander Kerfoot -- Ilya Mikheyev
Joe Thornton -- Jason Spezza -- Wayne Simmonds
Rasmus Sandin -- Zach Bogosian
Scratched: Riley Nash, Adam Brooks, Travis Dermott, Martin Marincin, David Rittich, Michael Hutchinson
Injured: John Tavares (concussion/knee), Ben Hutton (illness)
Status report
Ducharme said he does not consider the injury to Evans to be serious. … Keefe said Foligno volunteered to shift from wing to center after Tavares was injured in Game 1. … Nash is a healthy scratch after playing Game 1 as the center on the third line.
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