Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar feels the Leafs have taken too much heat in their defensive game over the years.
Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar feels the Leafs have taken too much heat in their defensive game over the years.
DENVER — Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar isn't surprised to see the Toronto Maple Leafs come into his building riding a season-high six-game winning streak.
While Toronto's been one of the hotter teams offensive as of late, it's the other side of the puck that Bednar has been focused on.
"I always feel like they don’t get enough credit for the way they defend and how hard they defend," Bednar said. "Their chance suppression, it’s been good now for a couple of years yet they still get beat up over it because they’re a really good offensive team.
The Leafs are 8-2-0 in their last 10 games and are coming off a 7-3 win against the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday that saw spread-out scoring from all four forward lines.
In addition to that, Auston Matthews has been on a scoring rampage with 10 goals in his last five games. In their last six games, the Leafs have allowed just 14 goals.
"There’s a lot of weapons on that team but they’re committed to what they’re doing on the defensive side. They’ve got the whole package together here, especially in the last 10 games and they’re winning every night It’s going to be a tough challenge."
The Avalanche have been treading water over the last month but have picked up a pair of wins in their last three games. Offensive defenseman Cale Makar has gone a season-high seven consecutive games without registering a point.
The Leafs will go with the same lineup that they dressed against the Vegas Golden Knights with Ilya Samsonov expected to start in goal. Alexandar Georgiev will start for the Avalanche.
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