Big fan of these lines. Contract is very realistic too

I wouldn't be opposed to trying out Kapanen on the left side with Matthews and see if he can play his off wing. He has been great at retrieving pucks/forchecking the last few weeks. Plus that would put a lot of speed on that line.

Tyler Ennis is found value at basically nothing. I'd think that one of the defenders try to clear waivers to get sent to the AHL. Gauthier has been decent, but based on the style of play the Leafs work with, Ennis is a much better fit with his speed and skill than a lot of others in the league that are much more expensive/harder to obtain. Let's keep him for a while

Why change whats working? Kapanen is looking great with Marleau and Kadri, leave them be. Same with Lindholm, Brown and Johnsson. I'd give Leivo a shot at playing with Matthews and Nylander and see how it goes. He's big so he can be a heavy presence on that line, he's fast enough to keep up and he's got more offensive potential than Hyman so perhaps he'll be a poor mans Hyman but with better offense.

That's how I feel about Kapanen. He was looking great on Matthew's line before 34 got hurt. I am a Lievo fan, but I don't think he should be playing top 6 minutes. I think Kapanen has earned his shot from his play these past few weeks. Either way, I am just excited to stop hearing about all the Nylander contract talks. Sounds like they are close to signing a deal so the broken record may finally be over!

For what? He isn't good enough to play with Matthews, has been okay on the 4th line. Ennis isn't good enough to play with TO. He has speed and skill but he's not strong enough to keep the puck. I doubt he'll pass through if put on waivers, I am not sure if Gauthier would either and I think he's more valuable than Ennis.

The Leafs have 2 major pieces coming back and they will need time to get back up to speed. Currently the Leafs have been rolling nicely with the lines they have. We could A) Change every line on the team and force players to get comfortable again, or B) form a new line with Matthews and Nylander and then you only affect those 2 who have chemistry together and whoever you put with them.

If you move Kapanen, you alter Kadri's line which is playing great. Move Johnsson and you are changing the Lindholm Line which has been fantastic for the most part. We know the 4th line is going to get blown up, so for the sake of chemistry and continuity, why not just take 1 guy from the 4th line to play with Matthews and Nylander, once they are up to speed, if it isn't working then changes can be made but to start with, this will have the smallest impact on the other lines, allowing them to perform under business as usual conditions.

Keep in mind Kadri's line is playing better in part because of their increased ice time. Also, Marleau and Kadri had great chemistry last year, and moving Marleau from Matthews line has made a big difference. If babcock is getting Nylander and Matthews back, hes not concerned about hurting Par Lindholm's line chemistry. Putting a 4th liner on Matthews line is not helping him. That means that Lievo will be playing against top defensive matchups every night. Hes not equipped for that. I'm not saying Kapanen is a bona fide top line guy, but hes better equipped to deal with top line matchups than Lievo is. We may just have to agree to disagree here. Regardless, I am looking forward to seeing them with a healthy/signed lineup.

I hear what you are saying and who knows. But if he doesn't care about affecting Lindholm's line then I'd wager Johnsson will get moved up to play with Matthews and Nylander. I'd just prefer to see a guy that can win battles along the boards and Leivo is good at that. I think he's good enough to handle harder matchups. Hyman can do it and Leivo I think is better offensively but a step down defensively so it could be a gamble that pays off.

I could also see Johnsson getting a shot on the top line. I hope Marleau stays with Kadri though, they seem to bring the best out in each other's game.