LEAF TAKEAWAYS: Craig Berube driven a bit ‘bananas’ by pre-season swings

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Published Sep 28, 2025 • 3 minute read

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The Maple Leafs record in pre-season games is 2-2, seemingly with equal positives and negatives as the final full week of training camp unfolds.

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There’s a degree of disorganization expected as new players, new lines and other changes present the staff with challenges and it’s led to an unusual trend of winning games with lesser lineups on the road in Ottawa and Montreal against stronger NHL-ready rosters and losing at home to the same clubs when Toronto has the same advantage, at least on paper.

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Our takeaways on Saturday’s 4-2 loss at Scotiabank Arena:

TURNING OVER NEW LEAFS

This was centre Nicolas Roy’s first game and the debut of a potential third line of all newcomers with Matias Maccelli and Dakota Joshua. There’s size for sure in Roy and Joshua, and spunk in Maccelli, but there was a problem Saturday.

“We want to get more offensive zone time,” understated Roy. “That’s when you have fun.”

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There weren’t many giggles as Montreal checked hard and forced many Leafs who still looked summer rusty into bad decisions.

Coach Craig Berube, who had Maccelli with Auston Matthews and Matthew Knies early in camp awaiting Max Domi’s return to health on Saturday, put Maccelli with John Tavares and William Nylander to start the third.

“I’m still experimenting,” Berube said of Maccelli’s ultimate opening night role.

He sees the Roy trio as it’s constituted leading the way in getting pucks behind opposing defences to create havoc, a hallmark of his first year behind Toronto’s bench. That will take some time to re-establish and certainly not on a night against the Habs when Berube thought a long week of practice and some players used in both Montreal games might have led to Saturday’s group lethargy.

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NOT SO SPECIAL

With a finite on-ice opportunity early in a camp where cutting numbers takes priority, it’s usually special teams that suffer.

Throw in the task of replacing Mitch Marner on both power play and penalty kill and leave Matthews out of Saturday’s lineup, and it led to several auditions. At one stage, the newest PK recruit William Nylander had a 2-on-1 rush brewing with Knies that went south in a hurry and became a 2-0 Montreal lead.

Roy, Maccelli, Joshua, Nylander and Nick Robertson recorded between 40 and 90 seconds of PK duty. Robertson was also on the top power play unit a bit with Matthews missing, while Domi, Roy, Maccelli and Joshua saw some man advantage time. But with overall play a little scrambly, it’s tough to make proper judgments.

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“That’s what you get sometimes in pre-season games,” Berube said. “It lacks intensity and that can drive a coach bananas.”

STOLIE THE STOIC GOALIE

Anthony Stolarz’s first pre-season action was near flawless at first with his towering sight line to pucks – until Leaf mistakes caught up to him and Montreal burned him for three goals on 18 shots. Berube hinted he’d play the whole game Saturday if the situation looked right, but Artur Akhtyamov finished the third.

Of great concern was a run through the crease by Montreal’s Laurent Dauphin that stretched Stolarz’s neck a bit, the Leafs sensitive since his and their season was impacted by Florida’s Adam Bennett’s errant elbow in the playoffs.

Stolarz shrugged it off Saturday, indicating he didn’t mind a little crease contact to truly get in game mode.

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A LITTLE PREVIEW

A week from Wednesday, the Leafs and Canadiens will be at it for real on Bay Street, Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield and Ivan Demidov will be back for the visitors against Matthews, Bobby McMann and Toronto’s regular fourth line.

Note to the Leafs, Lane Hutson is still good, the runaway Calder Trophy winner showing his moves on a power play goal, faking Joshua and zipping it past Stolarz.

“He’s really quick, agile and keeps you guessing,” said Joshua. “Good to see him tonight for some extra knowledge next time.

“We were a second or two late here or there, but we’ll sharpen up and be ready to go.”

lhornby@postmedia.com

X: @sunhornby

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