Blues at Maple Leafs preview

BLUES (1-3-2) at MAPLE LEAFS (6-2-0)
7 p.m. ET; NHLN-US, CBC, SN1, FS-MW, NHL.TV

Bozak, a forward, who spent his first nine NHL seasons with the Maple Leafs, signed a three-year, $15 million contract (average annual value $5 million) with the Blues as an unrestricted free agent July 1.
In 594 games with the Maple Leafs, Bozak had 365 points (136 goals, 229 assists). He has two points (one goal, one assist) with the Blues, who are 0-2-1 in their past three games.
The Blues have won four straight against the Maple Leafs.
The Maple Leafs had a five-game winning streak end on Thursday with a 3-0 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. They have outscored opponents 27-19 over the past six games. Forward Auston Matthews had seven-game multipoint streak end Thursday. He leads the NHL in goals (10) and points (16).

Players to watch

Blues forward Alexander Steen has five points (two goals, three assists) during a four-game point streak. Steen played 253 games with the Maple Leafs from 2005-09.
Maple Leafs forward John Tavares has 10 points (five goals, five assists) in his past six games.

They said it

"It didn't feel too weird the last couple days when we were here; I saw a few of the guys but being at the rink and going out there, I'm not going to lie, it felt a little weird. Hopefully those jitters go away pretty early. It means more for us than just me coming back here." -- Blues forward Tyler Bozak on his return to Toronto
"Bozak meant a lot. Him and James van Riemsdyk (who signed with the Philadelphia Flyers) were my linemates for a year and a bit and they were a big part of growing me into who I am now. Always made sure when we were on the road, I was being taken care of. From the get go, I was made to feel like I was a part of that line for a while." -- Maple Leafs forward Mitchell Marner

Blues projected lineup

Jaden Schwartz -- Brayden Schenn -- Vladimir Tarasenko
Zach Sanford
-- Ryan O'Reilly -- David Perron
Pat Maroon -- Tyler Bozak -- Alexander Steen
Sammy Blais -- Ivan Barbashev -- Jordan Kyrou
Vince Dunn -- Alex Pietrangelo
Joel Edmundson -- Robert Bortuzzo
Colton Parayko -- Jordan Schmaltz
Jake Allen
Chad Johnson
Scratched: Jay Bouwmeester, Jakub Jerabek, Robert Thomas
Injured: Carl Gunnarsson (knee / hip), Robby Fabbri (groin), Nikita Soshnikov (concussion)

Maple Leafs projected lineup

Patrick Marleau -- Auston Matthews -- Kasperi Kapanen
Zach Hyman -- John Tavares -- Mitchell Marner
Par Lindholm -- Nazem Kadri -- Connor Brown
Andreas Johnsson -- Frederik Gauthier -- Josh Leivo
Morgan Rielly -- Ron Hainsey
Jake Gardiner -- Nikita Zaitsev
Travis Dermott -- Igor Ozhiganov
Frederik Andersen
Garret Sparks
Scratched:Tyler Ennis, Martin Marincin, Justin Holl
Injured: None

Status report

Bouwmeester, who has played 1,112 games in 16 seasons, said this will be the first healthy scratch of his NHL career. "Obviously difficult decisions like this come when you're not winning hockey games," Blues coach Mike Yeo said "It's a very, very difficult decision for me as a coach when you've got a player you respect like Bouw in what he has accomplished in his career." ... Johnsson is expected to play after sitting out Thursday as a healthy scratch. … Soshnikov was loaned to San Antonio of the American Hockey League for a conditioning stint.

Stat pack

Tarasenko has three points (three assists) during a three-game point streak. … Schenn has six points (three goals, three assists) in his past four games. … Kapanen has four points (three goals, one assist) in his past three games.