Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Edmonton Oilers: TV Broadcast Information, Lineups, and Preview

Zach Hyman’s quest for 50 goals, of which he now has 48, will add intrigue to tonight’s annual Matthews vs. McDavid HNIC-in-Toronto matchup against his former team in his hometown at Scotiabank Arena (7:00 p.m. EST, Sportsnet/CBC).

In addition to Ilya Lyubushkin’s backend absence, the Leafs are without Mitch Marner, Calle Jarnkrok, and potentially Tyler Bertuzzi, which has left them severely limited when compared to an Oilers roster that is fully healthy. But this is the kind of big game where the healthy stars of the Leafs need to give it their all and exact some payback in their home barn, especially after the Oilers overcame a 2-0 deficit to defeat Toronto in Edmonton in January.

With a record of 18-12-3, the Leafs haven’t been nearly as good at home as they were in previous years, and they’ve let several big-time teams go by them at Scotiabank Arena (against Colorado, Boston, and Carolina). Before the playoffs, this would be the ideal time to begin reversing that tendency.

For this game, Edmonton is anticipated to have a loaded lineup that includes Draisaitl, McDavid, and Hyman. This puts special emphasis on Matthews’ matchup with Max Domi and either Matthew Knies or Bertuzzi, depending on Bertuzzi’s health. After a difficult night in Philadelphia, Matthews is coming off one of his best performances of the season in a back-to-back setting in Washington (five points). The Leafs will need a similar level of leadership from AM34 tonight against the NHL’s best team since mid-November (39-12-3 post-coaching change).