The Toronto Maple Leafs made a stunning lineup decision ahead of Saturday’s home game against the Seattle Kraken.
The Maple Leafs are off to a 3-2 start and will host the Kraken on Saturday. Ahead of the game, forward Steven Lorentz will return to the lineup after coming back from an injury, and Toronto is set to scratch Calle Jarnkrok, which is a surprise.
“Steven Lorentz in, Calle Jarnkrok out for tonight’s game against Seattle,” Sportsnet’s Anna Dua reported on X.
Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube explained the decision, calling it a numbers game.
“Just a numbers game. Nothing more than that,” Berube said pre-game. “It’s part of being a team. We did it last year, too. There are guys who probably don’t deserve to come out at times, but we have to try to use everybody. It’s a tough schedule this year like always and you need 23 men. That’s why they are here.”
Scratching Jarnkrok is a bit of a surprise, as the forward is off to a hot start. In 5 games this season, he has 3 goals, as he scored in each of the first three games. But, despite the hot start, Jarnkrok is in the press box for Saturday’s game.
Jarnkrok failed to record a point in the last two games and was a -2 against the Nashville Predators and a -1 against the New York Rangers.
Maple Leafs Coach Was Excited About Jarnkrok Being Healthy
Jarnkrok was injured for most of last season, and entering training camp, he wasn’t guaranteed a roster spot.
Jarnkrok ended up earning a roster spot and started off strong. After the first season of the game, Berube was excited that Jarnkrok was healthy again.
“He missed most of the year, came back, and was still being bothered by the injury,” Berube said about Jarnkrok. “Never really felt that good throughout the playoffs, either. He has had a full summer of training, he feels really good, and it’s noticeable. He looks really good to me, got a lot of jump in his step. We all know that Calle is a good player, but it’s about feeling good too and he feels good.”
Although Berube had praise for Jarnkrok, he’s back to being scratched, and his name could come up in trade rumors again. Jarnkrok is in the final year of his four-year, $8.4 million deal with the Maple Leafs.
Lorentz Draws Back Into Lineup
Lorentz has missed the last three games due to an injury, but he will return to the lineup on Saturday.
Ahead of Lorentz returning to the lineup, Berube is excited to see the forward back in the lineup. He will play on a line with Nic Roy and Dakota Joshua.
“Well, I think (pick up) where he left off. I thought he was playing really well. I thought he had a great camp. Start of the season, he was playing well. And then he took that hit, put him out for a couple,” Berube said. “But now he’s back in. So I think he should take where he left off, in my opinion. He was going well.”
Lorentz has 2 assists in 2 games this season.
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