Toronto Maple Leafs: Egor Korshkov makes presence felt in Marlies debut

Getting into his first game with the Toronto Marlies since signing an entry-level contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Egor Korshkov didn’t wait long before making an impact.

For years, Toronto Maple Leafs fans have been patiently waiting for Egor Korshkov to make his way overseas and while it is only one game, the wait might have been worth it.

After signing his entry-level contract (which starts in the 2019-2020 season) on May 1st, Korshkov made his way over to the Toronto Marlies on a professional tryout. The 22-year-old got the call in Game 2 of the team’s second-round series against the Cleveland Monsters and what a debut it was.

In just his third shift of the game, Korshkov showed his poise putting on a nice toe drag but was unable to convert on the chance. He also made it a point to show that he can lay a hit or two punishing players along the boards.

Then in the second period with the game tied at two, Rasmus Sandin made a great pass to send Korshkov in alone beating Brad Thiessen to give the Marlies the lead. Obviously, the great part about this play was the feed from Sandin but seeing the excitement from Korshkov was a great sight.

On top of that, it was nice hearing Korshkov’s comments after the game (even though he had to speak through a translator) because he shared his experience moving overseas. He also talked about playing on the smaller ice surface saying he liked the fact that players are forced to make decisions a lot quicker than on the larger rinks he has been accustomed to playing on.

Marlies head coach Sheldon Keefe also made it a point to give Korshkov credit for being able to step in despite not having a lot of practice time and the obvious language barrier along with that.

"“I thought he showed a lot of good skill today, good patience and poise with the puck for his first game, first time in this league and first time on the smaller. That was very encouraging,” Keefe said in his postgame comments. “He was involved physically, that’s a big part of his game and part of who he is. For him to feel comfortable enough to make his presence physically in the game I thought was very positive.”"

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After winning Game 1 in convincing fashion, the Marlies were in for a tougher night against Cleveland as they had a tough time generating scoring chances. Luckily for them, they continued to find success on the power play with Jeremy Bracco setting up Chris Mueller with a great pass to get the Marlies up on the board.

Now Korshkov wasn’t the only rookie to get a milestone in this game as Joseph Duszak wired a shot from the point to notch his first professional goal. Mac Hollowell recorded his first career AHL point with a secondary assist on Korshkov’s goal.

Sonny Milano was a force for the Monsters notching with a goal and two assists as Cleveland had 38 shots on goal. Luckily for Toronto, Kasimir Kaskisuo has been a rock in between the pipes making 35 saves.

With the game heading into overtime, Michael Carcone unloaded a rocket shot on a pass from Bracco to help the Marlies take a 2-0 series lead. Guess that means the Leafs have officially won the Josh Leivo trade if we completely ignore Leivo scoring against Toronto in Vancouver.

Bracco finished the game with two assists while Dmytro Timashov also had two helpers. Timashov was impressive in this game making some nice plays in the offensive zone that led to some strong scoring chances.

Next. Auston Matthews undergoes minor procedure. dark

The series now moves to Cleveland with Game 3 on May 5th at 3:00 p.m. ET.

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