Liljegren missed nearly a month and a half with an ankle injury after being tripped into the boards by Marchand.
The Toronto Maple Leafs learned a big lesson early last season about standing up for each other.
In the latest written 32 Thoughts, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported that the Maple Leafs showed their players clips of the Tampa Bay Lightning and their "pack mentality" after no one jumped in following Timothy Liljegren being tripped into the boards by Brad Marchand.
The defenseman suffered a high-ankle sprain on the play, which occurred on Nov. 2. Marchand didn't receive any supplemental discipline in the aftermath.
Although it's nearly a year after the collision, there'll be another learning opportunity to come together on Thursday night.
Toronto hosts head coach Craig Berube's former team, the St. Louis Blues, and after a blowout loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday, the Maple Leafs will want to come together and get a win for their new coach.
"Toronto followed up its big win over arch-rival Tampa with a stinker in Columbus. Their next one will be emotional: Craig Berube coaching against St. Louis. They should be inspired solely for him," Friedman wrote.
"There was something fitting about their nasty night with the Lightning, when they gave as good as they got. Last season, when Timothy Liljegren was injured by Brad Marchand, the Maple Leafs were shown videos of how Tampa consistently stood up for each other with a pack mentality, told that’s the identity they needed to create."
Last November, Friedman reported on Hockey Night in Canada that Torotno had a team meeting days following the collision between Liljegren and Marchand. In that meeting was a clear message: "Teams think it's too easy to push us around. Teams think we're soft," Friedman said.
Under Berube — who expects a lot from his players at every moment — standing up for your teammates is crucial. And it'll be even more important on Thursday night when Toronto attempts to come together and get a win for their head coach against his former team.