Berube said following the skate that there's still a chance Tavares plays on Saturday.

As the Toronto Maple Leafs prepared for their home opener against the Pittsburgh Penguins, they were missing one of their top players.

John Tavares was absent from Toronto's morning skate on Saturday morning due to an illness, per the Maple Leafs. The 34-year-old forward has played in both games this season, scoring one goal in that span, and it's unknown if he'll play later in the evening.

With the forward out of the morning skate, Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube has mixed things up. Pontus Holmberg moves up as the second-line center with Bobby McMann and William Nylander on his wings.

Max Domi has shifted to center the third line — the first time he's played the position this season — alongside Max Pacioretty and Nick Robertson. The first and fourth lines remain the same.

As do the defense.

Pacioretty moves into Tavares' spot on the power play with it looking like Toronto is preparing for the center to not be in the lineup against the Penguins. McMann shifts into Pacioretty's spot on the second unit.

Timothy Liljegren remains one of the odd men out in the Maple Leafs' defense corps. According to TSN's Darren Dreger, there's no imminent trade for the 25-year-old defender. Liljegren has admitted that his training camp wasn't as good as he had hoped.

Anthony Stolarz was occupying the home net during the morning skate and he's projected to be the starting goaltender for the team's home opener.

Where to watch

Catch the game nationally in Canada on Sportsnet. Puck drop is scheduled for shortly after 7:00 p.m. ET.

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