It’s Thanksgiving weekend and the NHL is now in full gear. It will be a busy Saturday night for the NHL as a whole, with 24 different teams in action tonight including the Maple Leafs. They will kick-off festivities tonight by hosting the hapless Senators on the first official Hockey Night in Canada broadcast of the season.

Ah, the Senators: a team whose management, staff, and players have been consistently dumb for its entire existence. Remember this hilarity?

“Wait until you get a look at the toe curve.” I miss you, Joe Bowen.

After tonight’s game the Leafs will take off for Chicago where they face the Blackhawks for their first road game of the season. Meanwhile, the Marlies hve started up their season, obliterating the Utica Comets last night, winning 7-2.

ICYMI
Here’s what we wrote about yesterday.

Is it too early to worry for the Toronto Maple Leafs? - Arvind
Worry is too strong, but ‘Is it too early to be mildly concerned’ isn’t good clickbait.

Kadri will pass you the puck, but what you do with it is up to you - Katya
What can the passing data from the Leafs first game tell us?

Liljegren, Moore, and Subban step up in 7-3 win over Utica - Hardev
The kids are going to be all right.

Other News

Kyle Dubas: Toronto Maple Leafs rookie GM brings new approach - SI
The clock had just struck midnight when the first message pinged John Tavares’s phone. It was June 24, less than one minute after NHL teams could officially start contacting potential free agents. As the biggest catch on last summer’s market—heck, the biggest since Zdeno Chara a dozen years ago—the former Islanders captain was fully prepared to receive an Odyssean assembly of suitors over the coming interview period. Which made the very first one—in a 12:01 a.m. text to him, not his agent—stand out.
“Yeah,” says Tavares, “Kyle was right on point.”

NHLPA files appeal on behalf of Tom Wilson - The Washington Post
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman will hear the appeal, but a date hasn't been set yet.

From The Branches