TORONTO

James van Riemsdyk is the latest centre of attention in Toronto, but he's not going to go it alone.

The full-time left winger was put between Joffrey Lupul and Phil Kessel at practice on Monday at the Air Canada Centre, a move which Maple Leafs coach Randy Carlyle described as a no-brainer.

With Dave Bolland and Tyler Bozak nursing injuries, and with no return to the lineup on the horizon for either, Carlyle didn't have much choice but to insert van Riemsdyk at centre.

"He has played there before, so it does not take rocket science to go in that direction," Carlyle said. "We think he is more of the fit right now."

While a glance at the standings might not reveal as much, it's a desperate time for the Leafs. They're balancing a 10-5 record against some shoddy defensive hockey that hasn't been more troublesome mostly because of some sharp goaltending from James Reimer and Jonathan Bernier.

Bolland, a hockey player's hockey player and a glue guy if there ever was one, returned to Toronto on Monday afternoon from Vancouver, where he had surgery to repair a severed tendon on the outside of his left ankle, an injury that occurred when he was sliced by the skate of Canucks forward Zack Kassian on Saturday; Bozak is dealing with a hamstring injury that he suffered on Oct. 25 in a game in Columbus, and though he could be eligible to play on Nov. 21 after serving time on long-term injured reserve, don't count on it. Carlyle said on Monday that Bozak hasn't yet been able to do so much as pedal a stationary bike.

General manager David Nonis has been working the phones to add depth at centre, and he will feel more heat to do so if the Leafs falter without Bolland and Bozak.

For now, time is a friend, as the Leafs are in the midst of a six-day break before their next game, a rare Friday night home tilt versus the New Jersey Devils.

Carlyle's hope is that van Riemsdyk is a quick study at centre. Nazem Kadri will have to assume some of the bulk as well, and was between Mason Raymond and David Clarkson on Monday. Jay McClement had Nikolai Kulemin and Troy Bodie on his flanks, while Trevor Smith was joined by wingers Colton Orr and Frazer McLaren.

Not since van Riemsdyk spent 2007-09 at the University of New Hampshire has he regularly played centre. There have been times he has taken faceoffs in the NHL, first for the Philadelphia Flyers and then the Leafs, but only rarely.

"I'll be playing against a little better players now, so we will see," van Riemsdyk said. "It's different.

"When you are used to playing a certain position, you naturally know where to go and (now) maybe you have to think about it a little bit more. I think it's a lot about timing -- being in the right spot at the right time and not losing your speed and all of that stuff. I'll get that through repetition and experience."

Carlyle knows how van Riemsdyk's teammates can make the adjustment an easier one. It's getting the message across so it nestles in the minds of the other forwards that could be a challenge.

"We can play smarter, that's for sure," Carlyle said. "We're doing some things that we are not really giving ourselves the best chance and some of the things that we have been doing have crept into our game, and they have become more the norm than abnormal. It's our job as a coaching staff to eliminate some of those things."

Lupul isn't just going to skate up and down his wing and hope van Riemsdyk can get him the puck.

"We're going to help him out, whether it be in the defensive zone or on faceoffs and everything will be fine," Lupul said. "Any time we can help out defensively, if I am first back in the zone, I'll get back and play down low, that commonly happens anyway. The one thing we will have to do a little extra is probably talk, communicate defensively and make sure all the assignments are taken care of.

"He is going to be expected to do some different things, but he is a good hockey player and he understands the game offensively and defensively."

terry.koshan@sunmedia.ca

Twitter: @koshtorontosun