The Maple Leafs escape to cottage country — and return to full strength

BRACEBRIDGE, Ont.—It was hard to tell who was happier as the Maple Leafs took the ice in front of 500 or so screaming schoolchildren at the newly opened Muskoka Lumber Community Centre.
There were plenty of smiling faces to choose from.
But the biggest belonged to defenceman Jani Hakanpää, who was testing his ailing knee with the main group for the first time in training camp. He said he felt comfortable in the Muskoka surroundings, comparing them to his Finland home.
“We were driving up here on the bus and we got here and I’m like: This is like home,” said Hakanpää. “The trees, the lakes. I got into the sauna and jumped into the lake and back. I love that. It’s so good for the body and the mind. It was unreal.”
The 32-year-old Hakanpää, signed to a one-year deal in free agency, was particularly happy to get through his first full practice on a day focused on special teams.
“It’s been a long time coming, for sure,” he said. “We’ve been doing a lot of work to get here. So, it was a lot of fun to actually be with the guys, get to know them a little more.”
Just as happy was forward Connor Dewar, who tested the surgically repaired labrum in his shoulder. Like Hakanpää, he had been held out of the main group until Wednesday.
“It’s a little different, better than skating on our own like we’ve been,” said Dewar, who finished last season with the Leafs after a trade with the Minnesota Wild. “It’s nice to be back out there with the group, moving along with learning the system.”
Dewar said he suffered the injury well before the playoffs in the spring, but was able to play through it.
“Mine got to the point it would just stop flexing almost every night, and it just had to get taken care of,” said Dewar, who had surgery in May.
Also smiling was new head coach Craig Berube, who had his healthiest group of skaters yet at camp. Veterans John Tavares and Calle Järnkrok didn’t need another maintenance day.
“It was great to see Hakanpää and Dewar out there,” said Berube. “They’ve obviously been working (their way back) … they look pretty good.”
Both players could help the Leafs greatly in their own end. Dewar is a bottom-six forward — a checker, defensively sound and a penalty killer.  Hakanpää  is an imposing six-foot-seven and 222 pounds — a stay-at-home defenceman who blocks shots.
“He’s big — he’s really big,” Leafs captain Auston Matthews said of Hakanpää. “Obviously with the skates on, too, it’s a different animal … He could be a big help for us, obviously, on the back end just with his size and his physicality (and) different areas — special teams, stuff like that. It’ll be good to see him continue to get better and progress.”
Will he be ready for opening night in Montreal next Wednesday?
“That’s a tough one,” Berube said. “I can’t really answer that question right now; we have to wait and see. We’ve got a little bit of time yet … he’s got to be comfortable with getting in there and playing a game.”
The Leafs have two pre-season games left, a home-and-home set with the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday and Saturday.
“We’re just going day-by-day right now,” said Hakanpää. “Trying to do everything we can. I feel like every day you take a little tiny step forward. We’ve been on a good track here, so we just want to keep doing that. Then when the time comes, we’re going to be ready to go.”
With roughly a week left, a return to nearly full health is a welcome sight for the Leafs — almost unheard of. Only rookie forward Fraser Minten (high ankle sprain) remains sidelined, and he was far from guaranteed a spot in the lineup.
It also raises the level of competition with 29 players competing for 23 jobs.
“Competition breeds improvement,” said Dewar. “You can’t take a day off. Everyone’s working toward the same goals here at the same time, so that’s a good thing.”