The Toronto Maple Leafs will go with 11 forwards and seven defensemen as Luke Schenn makes his return to the team and Gustafsson makes his Leafs debut against the Calgary Flames on Thursday.
CALGARY — Luke Schenn will make his much-anticipated return as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs when they visit the Calgary Flames on Thursday.
Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe announced the lineup changes that will see Erik Gustafsson also make his Leafs debut.
Forwards Zach Aston-Reese and Timothy Liljegren will come out of the lineup. With Toronto' limited to just 12 forwards on their active roster, the club will be forced to deploy 11 forwards and seven defensemen for the first time this season.
Liljegren appeared to have injured himself during the team's 5-2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday, but Keefe said the move was mostly about getting new bodies in rather than his injury.
"He's doing fine today and was fine last night too," Keefe said of Liljegren. "It's really that I just want to get those other two guys in. The fact that he did get shaken up a little bit here is another reason on the back-to-back to give him the day.
The Maple Leafs acquired Schenn from the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday in exchange for a 2024 third-round draft pick. Toronto acquired Gustafsson on the same day along with the Boston Bruins' 2023 first-round pick in exchange for Rasmus Sandin.