MONTREAL — Zach Hyman returns to the lineup when the Toronto Maple Leafs visit the Montreal Canadiens at Bell Centre on Saturday.
Hyman sat out of the team’s 7-3 win against the Ottawa Senators on Thursday.
“It was just a shot block that hit me in the foot there,” Hyman said. “I’m feeling good now.”
Hyman has four goals and six assists in 17 games this season. Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe says there will be no easing in of Hyman, who started this season on the third line but has since moved up to a regular top-six role.
Nic Petan comes out of the lineup to make room for Hyman’s return.
Defenceman Zach Bogosian also returns after sitting out one game for rest.
Bogosian has one assist in 17 games.
Mikko Lehtonen comes out of the lineup for Bogosian.
The Leafs just finished a series of three games in four nights with the Ottawa Senators, while the Montreal Canadiens had a week off.
Frederik Andersen starts in goal for the Maple Leafs after getting the night off on Thursday.
Andersen is 10-3-2 this season with a .905 save percentage.
The Canadiens will keep a watchful eye on Auston Matthews, who rides a 15-game point streak.
Matthews has seen a lot of Montreal’s defensive pair of Ben Chiarot and Shea Weber in the three games played between the teams this season.
As a team, Montreal is harder to generate scoring chances on,” Keefe said. “Not just for Auston’s but for our entire team; it’s going to be an extra challenge.”
The Canadiens are in the top-five in many even-strength scoring chance categories tracked by Sportlogiq and lead the league in even-strength inner slot shots on net for at 7.66 per game.
They are equally good in limiting the scoring chances against The Canadiens are fourth in the NHL expected goals-against at 2.16 per game. The Maple Leafs are 13th in expected goals-against at 2.42.
Alex Galchenyuk participated in his first full skate with his teammates on Saturday. Wearing the number 12, he was one of four players donning the gray extras jerseys, assigned to forwards not scheduled to dress in a game.
The Leafs acquired Galchenyuk in a trade with the Carolina Hurricanes for forward Egor Korshkov and defenseman David Warsofsky on Monday. After clearing protocols, Galchenyuk took the ice on his own on Thursday.
The last time the Leafs played a team with a long rest was on Jan. 24 against the Calgary Flames.
Calgary had 58 percent of the shot attempts in that game and Leafs goaltender Jack Campbell stood on his head to make 31 saves in a 3-2 victory.
The Flames had six days off, while the Leafs had travelled out west the day before and had to be ready for a 2 p.m. local time puck drop.
