Another abrupt and controversial change to the Maple Leafs’ lineup!

Veteran forward Scott Laughton has collected no points in eight games since the Toronto Maple Leafs acquired him from the Philadelphia Flyers on March 7 and he has managed to record just six shots on goal. However, head coach Craig Berube is not taking him out of the lineup for the game against Philly. 

However, Berube did make new changes to his lineup, and according to TSN’s Mark Masters, it was Pontus Holmberg who stayed out late at the Maple Leafs’ optional skate this morning and is expected to be the odd man out tonight.

Many expected that centre David Kampf would be a healthy scratch, seeing that he’s been the one sitting in the press box three times in the past five games. Holmberg has been in the lineup for every game since Jan. 14, but is likely to miss the action tonight amid coach Berube’s shuffles.

Holmberg played 11:27 in Toronto’s loss to the Nashville Predators on Saturday. He has put up six goals and nine assists for 15 points in 58 games this season. He is known to be a jack of all trades on the roster, and many are stunned at the fact that he’s the one sitting out for tonight’s matchup.

Holmberg draws penalties, sitting at 27 drawn penalties with a nine penalty lead over the next closest Leaf, Matthew Knies. On top of that, the forward is agile with the puck and the fact that his presence on the ice is likely to create a potential power play for Toronto, it just does not make sense to a lot of fans to have him off the ice against Philadelphia.

As for Kampf, he also suited up Saturday, registering two shots on goal in 12:24 of ice time. In 54 contests this season, he has recorded four goals and six assists for 10 points.