Maple Leafs defenceman William Lagesson will pick up right where he left off when he slots back into the lineup on Saturday — facing the Ottawa Senators.
The 28-year-old Swede has not played for the Leafs since Dec. 27, which coincidentally was also against the Senators.
Lagesson drew back into the lineup in the absence of veteran Mark Giordano, who head coach Sheldon Keefe said is day-to-day with a lower-body injury and did not participate in the morning skate ahead of the game in Ottawa (7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+). Illness kept Conor Timmins from taking Giordano’s spot.
Lagesson has three assists in 21 games with the Leafs this season while averaging 15:02 minutes of ice time. But he has been biding his time since just after Christmas for the chance to get back into the Toronto lineup. He skated alongside fellow Swede Timothy Liljegren in the morning.
Martin Jones, who has not played since a 6-4 loss in Vancouver on Jan. 20, gets the start in goal. The veteran is 9-6-1 this season with a 2.65 goals-against average and a .911 save percentage and filled the gap after Joseph Woll went down with an injury on Dec. 7 and presumptive starter Ilya Samsonov struggled in the first half of the season. But the Russian’s return to form (he is 4-1 since Jan. 21) has relegated Jones to back-up duty of late.