Craig Berube and Brad Treliving are in constant communication.
And the dialogue between the Maple Leafs coach and general manager, one would surmise, has ramped up with the National Hockey League trade deadline now less than a week away.
If it gets to a point where the Leafs are closing in on a deal for St. Louis Blues captain Brayden Schenn, Treliving won’t have to wonder what Berube thinks of his former player.
Schenn played in his 1,000th NHL game on Thursday night in Washington and on Friday after the Leafs’ morning skate in New York, Berube was asked about the milestone.
“I congratulated him today,” Berube told the media at Madison Square Garden. “I love that player. I love the guy. He’s a super human being.
“A thousand games is a lot of games in the league. I always say that guys who can play that long are dedicated to the game. They do all the right things throughout the summer, game in and game out preparing.
“He looks after his body and looks after himself and loves the game. He’s a hockey nerd. He just loves the game. It was great to see him get 1,000 games and I’m very happy for him.”
We wrote on Thursday that we think Schenn would be a fine addition for the Leafs as they hit the stretch run toward the Stanley Cup playoffs. Berube, without saying so explicitly, might agree after the two won the Cup together in 2019 in St. Louis.
In general, how much is Berube paying attention to trade speculation across the NHL?
“A little bit when it comes up sometimes on my phone if I’m looking at it,” Berube said. “I don’t go looking for it, that’s for sure. Sometimes some stuff will pop up on my phone and I’ll read it. I’m aware of most of the things that are going around.”
GOOD TO GO
Leafs winger William Nylander didn’t shed much light on the reason why he missed overtime against the Boston Bruins on Tuesday.
“I just felt like I couldn’t go and perform to my best at that moment in the game,” Nylander said on Friday morning. “It was tough to feel like that, but it’s all good. I’m fine.”
Nylander was shown during the broadcast on the bench appearing to favour his left arm. His absence didn’t hurt the Leafs, as Mitch Marner scored in overtime to cap a 5-4 thriller for Toronto.
Nylander, with several other Leafs, got the day off from practice on Wednesday in Boston. On Thursday in New York, it was a full day off for all of the players.
What did Nylander get up to in Manhattan?
“Shopping, sushi, a little sauna and the cold tub and more sushi for dinner,” Nylander said. “It was nice to get those two days. Yesterday, walked around the city and enjoyed New York.”
LOVE THOSE TKACHUKS
Leafs winger Ryan Reaves doens’t mind lumping himself in with those who are fans of brothers Matthew and Brady Tkachuk.
During a scrum on Friday, Reaves was discussing the 4 Nations Face-off and its impact when the questions turned to the Tkachuks. Never mind that both are Atlantic Division foes — Brady is captain of the Ottawa Senators and Matthew makes an impact every game with the Florida Panthers — Reaves is on board with the pair.
“I think they’re good for the game,” Reaves told reporters. “The way they play, the style they play, high intensity, in your face, good skill, physical.
“I think they’re very well-rounded players that a fan, or maybe not even a fan, just somebody who starts watching, I think they can grab onto those guys.”
The play of both Tkachuks for the United States helped raise awareness of the tournament and the sport of hockey as a whole. It came at a cost for the two, as each suffered an injury at the 4 Nations.
Each of the four teams left it all on the ice. The intensity of the games caught hold of observers everywhere.
“I think I said before the tournament, it was either going to be one of the most intense hockey (events) you’ve ever seen, or it was going to be like a very floating all-star game where nobody wanted to get hurt,” Reaves said. “The intensity (was what) I thought it was going to be. It was fun.”
Reaves liked what he saw when the match between Canada and the United States on Feb. 15 opened with three fights in the first nine seconds. Two involved, naturally, the Tkachuks.
“I wish I had better hands so I could be involved in that,” Reaves said. “That whole tournament was really good for the game. You had a lot of people who didn’t watch hockey talking about it. I think we gave them a pretty good fan base from that. It was a good job by all those guys.”
LOOSE LEAFS
The Leafs placed veteran winger Max Pacioretty (undisclosed) on injured reserve on Friday and recalled defenceman Marshall Rifai from the Toronto Marlies … Reaves was back in the Leafs lineup on Friday night, suiting up for the first time since Feb. 4. He was a healthy scratch for the previous five games. “Just working after practice, doing a little extra with the skills coaches, making sure I’m hanging out with the boys as much as I can,” Reaves said of his down time. “Keeping my mind fresh and not getting too distracted with the situation.” … Berube acknowledged that Reaves was back in to help combat the potential impact of big Rangers winger Matt Rempe. “Reavo in the lineup maybe deters him from being as physical as he has been,” Berube said.
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