After collecting nine of the last 10 points, can the Maple Leafs keep their good form rolling when they visit a banged-up Islanders team? (7:00 p.m. EST, Sportsnet/CBC) Game Day Quotes

Islanders rookie defenseman Matthew Schaefer on facing his hometown Maple Leafs:

Growing up watching Leafs games, I wasn’t too far outside (Toronto). It will be super awesome. It is like every other game in terms of trying to get the two points, but playing in the NHL is where you want to be, and it is fun.

Schaefer on matching up against Auston Matthews: 

From the start of the season, you’re playing against all of the top players in the league, and you’re line-matching and things like that. You are always looking to learn, and you’re always looking to shut them down.

It is always a challenge each and every night going up against top guys like Matthews. In the first couple of games at the start of the season, Ovechkin was one of them, along with Crosby, and so on. It is pretty cool, but when you are in the game, you are just looking to shut them down and win the game.

Islanders head coach Patrick Roy on the impressive rookie season from Schaefer: 

We all knew he had a lot of skill and talent, but it is the everyday consistency that he has shown that has impressed me the most. Every day, he is ready to play and plays hard.

He is very involved offensively, and he is also working really well defensively. He would not play an average of 24+ minutes if he weren’t capable of defending. He does it because we trust him.

He is playing with [Ryan Pulock], who has played really well and helps him a lot. He is a vet, and I am sure it brings a lot of confidence to his game. He deserves a lot of credit for his success, but I’m very impressed with the consistency he’s shown.

As a goalie, I was not very consistent when I was 20 years old.

John Tavares on the challenge presented by Schaefer on the Isles’ blue line: 

He’s obviously a stud. The way he can play the game is really special. He seems to have tremendous character and a great head on his shoulders.

His ability to play the game is special. We’ll have our hands full tonight. Even though he is a player who is only half a season into his career, it has been really, really impressive.

Tavares on the team’s 4-0-1 stretch: 

We’re just competing hard. Our game is becoming more in sync without the puck, when we get the puck, and in how we maintain play and possession while trying to wear the opponent down and generate offense.  There has been good energy amongst the team.

We have put ourselves in good spots with leads and have taken care of them well, and then the other night, we got down a few and just stayed with it. You work for some opportunities, get yourself back in the game, the vibe of the group continues to stay strong, and you find a way onto the right side of it.

There are a lot of good things within our game and certainly within the energy of our group.

Matt Benning ahead of his Leafs debut:

From playing in the American League over the last year, I think my confidence is still there. I have been playing a lot of minutes down there, and that is fun.

Obviously, I want to be here, but you can’t really look in terms of what-ifs. I have been around here for a while with this organization and in the NHL. If you keep playing that (what-if) game, it’s not good for you mentally. It is just about putting one foot in front of the other, working hard, and being a good teammate.

You can’t be too up or down. I know it is going to be hard; if anything, I am going to be too up. For me to settle into my game, I need to turn the dial just right. I told my wife yesterday that if there is an opportunity to come up and play, I will still be nervous, even though I have been around for a little while. It is a good nervous. It is a privilege to be nervous out there.

I’ll go out there, do my thing, and leave it all out there.

Benning on his pairing with Simon Benoit:

He’s a good skater. He defends well. We are both simple players. You are not going to see anything flashy out of me. Play hard, make it hard for their forwards to get to the net — simple, simple hockey.

Craig Berube on Benning’s game:

I thought he had a good camp. He is a competitor. He has good experience in the NHL, with close to 500 games in the league. He’ll go in for Myers tonight.

He is a first-pass guy. The experience helps a lot. He moves well, and he competes. Coming into camp, he really pushed for a spot.

Berube on throwing together a Morgan Rielly-Troy Stecher pairing:

[Stecher] is a good fit no matter what. His game doesn’t change, and that is important. He can jump in there and play a different role, almost, because his game is not going to change. He is simple, competes, skates, works, and makes the first pass.

With Morgan, he can do his thing and get up the ice. Stech likes to get going up the ice, too, so we can’t have both of them going at the same time. There has to be some communication on that.

Maple Leafs (19-15-6) vs. Islanders (22-15-4): Head-to-Head Stats

via NaturalStatTrick.com & AdvancedHockeyStats.com

Toronto Maple Leafs Projected Lines

Forwards
#74 Bobby McMann – #34 Auston Matthews – #11 Max Domi
#63 Matias Maccelli – #91 John Tavares – #23 Matthew Knies
#53 Easton Cowan – #55 Nicolas Roy – #89 Nick Robertson
#18 Steven Lorentz – #24 Scott Laughton – #19 Calle Jarnkrok

Defensemen
#22 Jake McCabe – #95 Oliver Ekman-Larsson
#44 Morgan Rielly – #28 Troy Stecher
#2 Simon Benoit – #33 Matt Benning

Goaltenders
Starter: #60 Joseph Woll
#35 Dennis Hildeby

Extras: Philippe Myers, Jacob Quillan
Injured/Out: William Nylander (day-to-day), Chris Tanev (IR), Dakota Joshua (IR), Brandon Carlo (IR), Dakota Mermis (IR), Anthony Stolarz (LTIR)

New York Islanders Projected Lines

Forwards
#27 Anders Lee – #13 Mathew Barzal – #51 Emil Heineman
#49 Maxim Shabanov – #44 JG Pageau – #7 Maxim Tsyplakov
#29 Jonathan Drouin – #64 Calum Ritchie – #10 Simon Holmstrom
#32 Kyle MacLean – #53 Casey Cizikas – #16 Marc Gatcomb

Defensemen
#48 Matthew Schaefer – #6 Ryan Pulock
#3 Adam Pelech – #77 Tony DeAngelo
Cole McWard – #24 Scott Mayfield

Goaltenders
Starter: #33 David Rittich
#50 Marcus Hogberg

Injured/Out: Ilya Sorokin, Bo Horvat, Kyle Palmieri, Alexander Romanov, Semyon Varlamov, Pierre Engvall, Ethan Bear