Tight end Joel Edmundson 'feels 100%' about Maple Leafs roster spot

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Joel Edmundson and his fighting spirit returned to the Maple Leafs lineup on Thursday night.

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The presence of Edmundson, who had missed the previous eight games after throwing an interception against Carolina on March 24, was a reminder of the number of defensive backs the Lifters have on the roster.

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You can never have too much depth, but the Leafs would be better off if they had a few good pairing defensemen. We know they have to make the Stanley Cup playoffs by committee, which is more of a commentary on what they lack than what they have.

The Leafs took a look at the severity of Edmundson's injury prior to their 6-5 loss against the New Jersey Devils at Scotiabank Arena.

“If it was the playoffs, I would have played the right way,” Edmundson said. “It wasn't such a big injury, we wanted to make sure I was 100% before I came back.

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“I feel 100% now, I've been skating for the last two weeks. Feel good.”

Ilya Lyubushkin also played and Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe benched Jake McCabe and Conor Timmins. Timothy Liljegren, who has recovered from an upper body injury, will be a full participant in practice on Friday.

“Call it Caber Maintenance Day,” Keefe said. “He's been through a lot of bumps and injuries all season.

“Honestly, I don't know if he's played 100% a lot of games. Nothing stopped him from playing, but he played a lot. The rest of our group feels good about the rank and file now.”

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Against the Devils, the pair of TJ Brodie and Edmundson had a rough transition against the first goal and for some reason Mark Giordano put the puck perfectly in the tape of Nolan Foote for the Devil's second goal.

“Having missed a few weeks, I want to get up to speed and get my physicality back,” Edmundson said after playing 19 minutes, 22 seconds. “Those plays, this time, everything. I want to get my game back. I thought I was playing good hockey before I got hurt.”

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While Keefe should go into the postseason with more or less defensive pairings, a few moving parts remain.

As for Edmundson, Keefe said the talk of keeping the 30-year-old on the sidelines “was pretty easy.”

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“There's a lot of things guys do in the playoffs that obviously never happen in the regular season because it doesn't make sense,” Keefe said. “(It's) one of those situations.”

After being acquired by the Washington Capitals on March 7, Edmundson played in seven games before suffering an injury.

“It's huge,” Edmundson said of getting playing time before the playoffs. “We have to focus on our game and prepare well and go into the playoffs. You want to have that confidence ready for the first game.

“It was definitely a frustrating (non-game), but we have a lot of defensemen who can jump and they played strong, so that makes it a little easier. But hockey is never fun to watch.”

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MEX

One aspect of Max Domi's game that makes him stand out among the Leafs' top six forwards is his average streak. Of this group, he's the only player who really has one. He is sometimes paired with Tyler Bertuzzi, but we haven't seen much of him this season.

Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and William Niners each bring a wealth of offensive skills as well as defensive attributes. But no one is mad except for the odd face wash with captain John Tavares.

Domi, who likes to take a nose in other people's business, is not like that. And Domi not only has no trouble dropping the gloves, he clearly enjoys doing it. He made short work of the Devils' Simon Nemec in the second period after Nemec had a bit of a mixup with Matthews along the sideboards.

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Domi's gritty nature is what general manager Brad Treliving talked about last summer when he talked about adding a “nose” to the Leafs' lineup.

This will be an important element in the first round of the playoffs, especially if the Leafs face the Florida Panthers. The Panthers' Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Bennett and Ryan Lomberg, to name a few, play with a lot of, well, what and vinegar.

Of course, the Leafs will enter the playoffs with more physicality than before. Edmundson, McCabe and Simon Benoit will do it if he gets in. Ditto Ryan Reaves if he's in the Game 1 lineup.

And Domi has 116 penalties in the season. If he leads the Leafs in penalty minutes late in the season — and Domi will, given that McCabe is second on the Leafs with 54 — he will be the first Domi to lead Toronto in penalty minutes since his father, Tye, in 2003-04. 208.

The apple did not fall far from the tree and landed upright. There's no disputing the passion Tee's kid brings every night, and there's no denying his ability to find Matthews with the puck.

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