Last year’s opening night lineup for the Toronto Maple Leafs featured Jake Gardiner, Ron Hainsey, Nikita Zaitsev, Travis Dermott, Morgan Rielly and Igor Ozhiganov.
Gardiner may or may not re-sign (he probably won’t). Zaitsev was traded, Hainsey is gone, Ozhiganov went to Russia, and Dermott is injured and won’t play until November.
Rielly will be joined by Tyson Barrie, Jake Muzzin, and some combo of Gardiner (never give up hope) Cody Ceci, Timothy Liljegren, Rasmus Sandin, Ben Harpur, Jordan Schmaltz and Kevin Gravel.
But what is far more interesting, is the collection of players the Leafs are rumoured to have tried and acquired this summer.