Leafs winger clipped

By TIM WHARNSBY -- Toronto Sun Todd Warriner set a goal this season to play in all 82 games for the first time in his NHL career.
Injuries or benchings prohibited the Maple Leafs left winger from achieving that target in his previous five seasons in Toronto.
But unless there is a change of heart by Leafs general manager/coach Pat Quinn in the next 24 hours, Warriner will be denied again.
With captain Mats Sundin set to return tomorrow in Carolina against the Panthers, Warriner seems to be the odd man out.
"Todd hasn't done anything necessarily to remove himself," Quinn said. "What I'm suggesting is that perhaps we have to figure out some sort of rotation."
In other words, Warriner will be out tomorrow, somebody else will sit Friday and yet another player will miss the game Saturday. It's Quinn's way of being fair.
Warriner hopes a rotation will be the case. Quinn didn't talk to Warriner yesterday about his apparent benching. When the latter arrived at Maple Leaf Gardens for practice, there was a green sweater in his locker -- the same colour as veteran Kris King's. King has sat for 10 of 13 games this season.
"Things like this happen when you have a lot of depth on the team," said Warriner, who has just two goals and one assist in 13 games and is pointless in his past eight games. "I've been struggling a bit, to be honest. You have to contribute to stay in the lineup.
"But I'm not happy. It's not easy to take."
Still, Warriner isn't about to upset Quinn's cigar box by pulling a Steve Sullivan and asking for a trade. Warriner, 25, likes playing for the Leafs and knows he is an injury away from returning to action.
It's not definite that Sundin will make his comeback tomorrow from a non-displaced fracture in his right foot, suffered on Oct. 9 from a Radek Bonk shot in Ottawa against the Senators.
He hasn't been cleared medically to play and he underwent a lengthy treatment following practice yesterday. But the indication is Sundin is ready.
"Day be day, the strength in the ankle is coming back," Sundin said.
With Sundin back, each of the four lines will undergo some tinkering. Sundin will assume his old spot between Steve Thomas, just one goal in 13 games, and Jonas Hoglund, goalless in six games.
"Hopefully, it will help my production," Thomas said.
Quinn did consider moving Sundin to the wing, but the Leafs captain is more comfortable at centre. Still, that move might come at a later date.
"It helps when a guy likes a certain spot and does well in that certain spot," Quinn said.
Surprisingly, Quinn has broken up the Dmitri Khristich-Nik Antropov-Mike Johnson combination by putting Yanic Perreault in Antropov's spot. Antropov was moved from centre to right wing on a line with Igor Korolev and Sergei Berezin. The fourth line consists of Garry Valk, Alyn McCauley and Tie Domi.
"I happen to like (Antropov) at centre," Quinn said. "It's one of those things we are going to do for now. I like his range and he might be back at centre.
"We have an opportunity to experiment. Maybe the experimentation will show us the right way.
Meanwhile, Dmitry Yushkevich, who spent Sunday with his wife and triplets at their Philadelphia-area home, grieving the death of his father, was back for practice yesterday.

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