TAMPA — Sheldon Keefe refuses to tip his hand ahead of the biggest game of his career.
“I’m not going to take questions on the lineup,” the head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs began his availability Saturday, hours before Game 6 and a second shot to eliminate the Tampa Bay Lightning.
It’s a stance he reiterates when asked directly if defenceman Timothy Liljegren could draw into the series after sitting on the sidelines for 16 days.
Toronto held an optional morning skate.
Liljegren did not participate, which is his custom on nights he plays.
The oft-criticized Justin Holl did participate; he seldom does on nights he plays.
None of the forwards stayed on for extra work, which is unusual.
Gamesmanship is at play here.
Keefe says the Maple Leafs have some undisclosed injury-related, game-time decisions to make.
Holl’s partner, Mark Giordano, did skate Saturday, as per his routine.
Giordano absorbed a hard boarding from Pat Maroon at the end of Game 5’s second period and needed attention before eventually returning in the third period.
Officially, Keefe is noncommittal, leaving the door open for a 7/11 setup as well. Still, we’d be stunned not to see Liljegren and Michael Bunting enter the fray.
Bunting was healthy scratched in Game 5, in part, because the Leafs were on a three-game win streak.
“I think he recognized the situation he and the team were in and continued to stay positive and worked to be ready when called on,” Keefe said.
“He’d bring energy — in both how he plays and also the fact he hasn’t played (since Game 1, 11 days ago). As the series goes on, it weighs on everybody, the grind that it is. So having a guy who hasn’t played come in can give us a boost.”
The Lightning are downplaying their anger over Bunting’s Game 1 headshot on Erik Cernak, who will miss a fifth straight game due to a suspected concussion.
How might Bunting’s return impact the series?
“Nothing. Just leave him alone,” Maroon said. “We all know what happened. So, if he is in, he’s in. Nothing we can do now. We’ll figure that out later.
"Obviously, he’s going to be in guys’ faces and doing his job, so just gotta stay focused and stay out of stuff.”
Alexander Kerfoot noted the Maple Leafs were more upbeat than normal coming off Thursday’s disappointing home loss, where they missed a chance to eliminate Tampa.
“Being on the road helps with that. There is far less going on when you’re on the road,” Keefe adds. “All the players had dinner together last night, as we did the previous time that we came down here to Tampa for each of the nights we were here. In my time in this role, that’s the first time that’s happened, where the team has stayed together every night.
“That just keeps things in-house, keeps them collected in their thoughts. Keeps us a cohesive group. The players have really led the way in that department. There’s far less happening outside of what really matters.”
Maroon and Ryan O'Reilly, who shared a 2019 Stanley Cup win in St. Louis, both suggest it’s best to lean into the excitement of the moment.
Keefe believes the Maple Leafs’ more intense lockdown approach is sharpening their focus.
“When you’re in these moments and you’re dealing with the different pressures and things that come with a playoff series, the more you can keep it internal in terms of what really matters, focus on what matters, the better,” Keefe says.
“I think being on the road is an advantage in that sense right now. It allows our team to pull together that much closer, because we know this is the hardest win to get.”
