The Toronto Maple Leafs are getting some significant pieces back on Wednesday as they look to complete a three-game sweep of the Edmonton Oilers.

Star pivot Auston Matthews and No. 1 goaltender Frederik Andersen will return to the lineup, head coach Sheldon Keefe said, according to TSN's Mark Masters.

Matthews missed the team's last two games with a wrist injury, an ailment he's played through for most of the campaign. He appeared to aggravate the issue last week against the Calgary Flames while crashing into the boards. The 23-year-old still leads the NHL with 18 goals.

Andersen hasn't played since Feb. 20 against the Montreal Canadiens due to a lower-body injury. Michael Hutchinson and Jack Campbell held down the fort, going 3-1-0 with only four goals against. Andersen owns a .905 save percentage and a 2.69 goals-against average over 16 games this season.

Here is Toronto's projected lineup, with Alexander Barabanov coming out for Matthews.

Keefe also added that Campbell, who missed Monday's game after aggravating a leg injury that held him out of action for over a month, could back up Andersen on Wednesday. If he can't play, Hutchinson will dress.

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Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin revamped his coaching staff last week, firing head coach Claude Julien and associate Kirk Muller while promoting assistant Dominique Ducharme to interim bench boss. Goalie coach Stephane Waite initially appeared to be safe, but Bergevin wasn't done tinkering.

Waite was informed during the second intermission of Tuesday's game against the Ottawa Senators that he was being let go, Bergevin said Wednesday, according to The Athletic's Arpon Basu.

"This decision was not based only on this season," Bergevin said. "I had seen a bit of a pattern."

Starting netminder Carey Price has struggled this season. Even after stopping 26 of 27 shots Tuesday night, his .893 save percentage and 2.96 goals-against average are both worse than the league average. Price's $10.5-million cap hit makes him the NHL's highest-paid goalie, and there's still an additional five years left on his contract.

Bergevin insisted the 33-year-old remains elite and might just need a different voice in the form of new director of goaltending Sean Burke.

"Carey is still an excellent goalie, one of the best in the league, but he needs help," Bergevin said.

The Canadiens hired Burke as a scout in 2016, but he'll need to quarantine for 14 days before he can join the team. Bergevin believes Burke's experience going through the "ups and downs" through his 18 years as an NHL goaltender will help Price.

Bergevin added he did not consult Price before making the change.

"The day I decide to do that, it will mean I'm not the right guy for the job," he said.

Bergevin didn't dive into what Burke's role will entail or whether there will be a goaltending department in the future similar to the Florida Panthers' recent innovative approach. Burke's contract still expires at the end of the season.

Waite had been Montreal's goalie coach since 2013-14, meaning he oversaw Price's career year in 2014-15 when he won the Vezina and Hart trophies.

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Something's got to give in the negotiations between the Carolina Hurricanes and Dougie Hamilton.

The two sides have held discussions about a new contract for the pending unrestricted free-agent defenseman, but the talks have simmered since February and there's "a tangible gap" between what Hamilton's camp and the team are looking for, reports The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun.

Hamilton would be the best blue-liner available if he were to hit the open market when eligible July 28.

The 27-year-old is in the final season of the six-year, $34.5-million pact he inked with the Calgary Flames in 2015. Calgary traded him to the Hurricanes in a deal that sent rearguard Noah Hanifin and forward Elias Lindholm out west in 2018.

Hamilton has thrived since joining Carolina, forming one of the NHL's top pairings alongside Jaccob Slavin and posting 0.6 points per game with stellar underlying numbers over two-plus campaigns.

The 6-foot-6 defender has posted one goal and 13 assists while averaging over 22 minutes of ice time in 22 games this season.

Carolina is expected to have more than $28 million in cap space for 2021-22, according to CapFriendly.

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The Montreal Canadiens fired Stephane Waite and named Sean Burke their new director of goaltending, the team announced Tuesday.

Waite held the position since 2013. He joined the Canadiens after winning Stanley Cups with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2010 and 2013 and worked closely with Carey Price during the prime of his career.

The Canadiens hired Burke as a scout in 2016. He also spent six seasons with the Arizona Coyotes in a variety of roles, including assistant general manager. He had an 18-year NHL career as a netminder and was GM of Canada's 2018 Olympic team.

Burke needs to quarantine for 14 days before he can join the team.

Montreal fired former head coach Claude Julien and assistant Kirk Muller last week. The team named Dominique Ducharme its new bench boss on an interim basis.

The Canadiens' goaltending has been a focal point amid the club's recent slump, as Price has posted an .888 save percentage in 12 appearances this season. Jake Allen has registered significantly superior stats in the backup role.

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The Toronto Maple Leafs are in the market to reinforce their forward corps prior to the trade deadline, TSN's Darren Dreger reported on Tuesday's edition of "Insider Trading."

"Management would like to bolster their forward group," Dreger said. "They'd like to give this group a little more depth and firepower, particularly in the middle of the lineup.

"As long as the Leafs continue to win, then I know (general manager Kyle) Dubas is going to try and bolster the group up front."

This season's trade deadline is set for April 12.

Toronto added several forwards this past offseason, including Joe Thornton, Wayne Simmonds, Travis Boyd, and Jimmy Vesey. Rookie winger Nick Robertson made the club at the start of the season, too, but hasn't suited up in the NHL since being injured opening night.

The Leafs sit first in the NHL with 36 points in 23 games. They also boast the league's top offense with 81 goals.

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The NHL will place Sidney Crosby on its COVID-19 protocol list and he won't play Tuesday night against the Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan said.

Sullivan added that the Penguins canceled their morning skate due to protocol. Landing on the list does not necessarily mean a player tested positive.

Crosby is tied for the team lead with seven goals and ranks first among Pittsburgh skaters in both assists (11) and points through 20 games. The 33-year-old Penguins captain sits second among the club's forwards in average ice time, logging 20:24 per contest.

The NHL's COVID-19 cases - both suspected and confirmed - have appeared to be decreasing lately following multiple outbreaks earlier in the season. On Monday, the league's COVID-19 protocol list consisted of only four players: John Hayden of the Arizona Coyotes, Patrik Nemeth of the Detroit Red Wings, Kaapo Kakko of the New York Rangers, and Tomas Hertl of the San Jose Sharks.

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