'I Didn't Think It Was Allowed For The (Maple) Leafs Not To Play On A Saturday Night': Toronto Head Coach Craig Berube Using Day Off To Watch Utah Hockey Club
Hockey Night in Canada and the Toronto Maple Leafs—it's almost a given that the club will be in action on a Saturday night. But this weekend, Toronto had the rare opportunity for a day of practice before hosting the Utah Hockey Club for the very first time at Scotiabank Arena on Sunday.
"I didn't think it was allowed for the Leafs not to play on a Saturday night," Berube said with a smile. "We'll take it."
The Maple Leafs could certainly use the extra day as they deal with some injury issues up front. Auston Matthews took the ice for the first time in a week, but did not skate with the team as he recovers from an upper-body issue. The Leafs will also be without Max Domi (lower-body) for Sunday's contest.
The day away from game action also provided Alex Nylander the chance for a full practice. Nylander, who signed a one-year deal with the Leafs on Friday after starting the season on an AHL-only deal, benefited from the practice time before making his way into the lineup on Sunday.
Related: Why The Maple Leafs Signed Alex Nylander To A One-Year NHL Deal
The break was welcome after the Leafs wrapped up a grueling stretch of 10 games in 20 days before the start of last week.
"It's nice to get a little break here and get a little practice time and be able to work on things that you haven't worked on in a while," Berube said.
Historically, the Maple Leafs were a fixture on Saturday nights when the NHL schedule was released, but that's changed over time. The evolution of scheduling and the involvement of various stakeholders have led to exceptions.
One of those stakeholders is Amazon, which secured the rights to Canadian hockey games on Monday nights this season. According to the agreement, no Canadian club can play on Monday unless it’s part of Prime Video's broadcast. This has resulted in a few more Sunday games for the Leafs, leading to more back-to-back situations.
Toronto has games on back-to-back nights 16 times this season, tied for the most of any team.
For instance, the Leafs will also have Saturday, March 1 off before visiting the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday, March 2. The following day, they’ll return home for an Amazon Prime game against the San Jose Sharks on Monday, March 3.
In a rare twist, the Leafs will have the advantage of resting while waiting for a team playing the night before.
"Normally I watch every night some sort of hockey, and tonight I'll be watching Utah play," Berube said.
