Sheldon Keefe appears to have new assignment for Sandin and Liljegren
After an unexpected day off yesterday, thanks to a nasty flu bug that was making its way through the locker room, the Leafs took to the ice for a full practice this morning ahead of their game against the Jets tonight. One thing the Leafs focused on was their power play, after going just 5 for 17 over their last four games.
The Leafs have reverted to two more traditional units with Morgan Rielly manning the point on the first unit instead of using five forwards as the Leafs have opted for lately. On the second unit, Sheldon Keefe has gone with the most traditional set up, opting to use both Rasmus Sandin and Timothy Liljegren on the second unit with Sandin manning the point while Liljegren was positioned on the half-wall.
Lately, the second unit either had Rielly or one of Liljegren/Sandin depending on who was deployed on the first unit. Having both puck-moving blueliners on the second unit adds a bit more skill to a lackluster forward group. Not only that, but it also shows that Keefe has liked what he has seen from the two Swedes in their play and is trusting them enough that the power play will run through them.
It is a huge opportunity for both to get more minutes and a little internal competition doesn't hurt either as one of them could outperform the other and solidify themselves as the quarterback for the second unit.
