Ex-NHL exec Pierre McGuire speculates Maple Leafs' line shuffling to fill-in Mitch Marner void - "Could see Matthews & Knies together"

Pierre McGuire talked about the Toronto Maple Leafs' lineup on Monday. Mitch Marner was traded to Vegas after scoring 102 points last season. His departure leaves a large hole in Toronto’s top six.

McGuire joined "Toronto Sports Rush," where he talked about how the Maple Leafs' lineup is going to look in the 2025-26 NHL season. McGuire said the coaching staff will likely test many line changes early.

"Nylander going to be there. They're going to go the super line way with Nylander, Matthews and Knies," McGuire said (Timestamp: 6:30 onwards). "Or do they move Maccelli up there? Or do they move, maybe (Calle) Jarnkrok up there? Do they put Max Domi there? You don't know, in the Marner spot."

McGuire believes Craig Berube may use pairings instead of full line sets. He explained the “twosome” approach to forming lines.

"I do think there's two guys," McGuire added. "And this is a Scotty Bowman theory, you go in twosomes rather than threesomes. So, you know, I could see Tavares and Maccelli being together. I could see Matthews and Knies being together. I could see McMann and Reaves being together.

"So I could see twosomes, like three twosomes, and then you just adjust the one winger. I could see that happening early on with Craig Berube and his staff in Toronto, I really could."

If we take NHL.com's projected Maple Leafs' lineup for the 2025-26 season, here are the most likely pairings for the team. The projected top line is Matthew Knies, Auston Matthews and Max Domi. The second line could include Matias Maccelli, John Tavares and William Nylander.

On to the third line, we can expect Bobby McMann, Nicolas Roy and Dakota Joshua. And on the fourth line, Steven Lorentz, Scott Laughton and Calle Jarnkrok.

McGuire believes early experiments will guide the coaching staff. The Leafs need multiple players to share Marner’s lost production. Success depends on how well the new pieces fit.

Toronto Maple Leafs' offseason additions in 2025

Toronto made several offseason moves to add depth. Matias Maccelli, Nicolas Roy, Dakota Joshua and Michael Pezzetta all joined the team. Roy came in the trade for Marner and is expected to play key minutes. Maccelli, 24, could earn a top-six role. Toronto will be hoping this group helps balance the offense.

The Maple Leafs finished 52-26-4 last season. They were first in the Atlantic Division but lost in the second round of the playoffs. Craig Berube came after replacing Sheldon Keefe as coach, but couldn't help his team go deep in the playoffs.