Easton Cowan, Nick Robertson and Pontus Holmberg continue to jockey for roster spots, with varying degrees of success.

While it's only the preseason, Max Pacioretty might've stolen the show for the Toronto Maple Leafs in his debut with the team.

The Toronto Maple Leafs opened their preseason with an overtime loss against the Ottawa Senators, although Max Pacioretty made a powerful statement in his first game for the franchise. The veteran wrapped up his debut scoring two goals in the team's 6–5 loss to the Sens and pretty much confirming his presence on the Leasf regular-season roster.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have a deal in place for Max Pacioretty according to one NHL insider. Veteran National Hockey League forward Max Pacioretty looked about as good as could have been expected in his first preseason game as a Toronto Maple Leaf on Sunday night, but there were legitimate concerns about whether or not he had been too good.

Most NHLers who are 35 and older treat exhibition games with disdain if they must participate at all. Not Max Pacioretty, who geared up for Sunday’s match at a less-than-full Scotiabank Arena like it was the Maple Leafs season opener.

The first preseason game is in the books as the Toronto Maple Leafs took on the Ottawa Senators on Sunday. Toronto has many things to improve on when looking back on their performance.

The guy in the middle of the action for the Maple Leafs on Sunday was the 35-year-old who’s in camp on a professional tryout attempting to prove he’s put all his injury issues behind him.

Expect the unexpected in a pre-season NHL game. But there were too many surprises for head coach Craig Berube in Sunday’s debut behind the Maple Leafs bench, a disjointed start to an eventual 6-5 overtime loss to an Ottawa Senators team that paled to Toronto’s veteran lineup.