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Leafs hit the ice at Central Park

Dion Phaneuf

The Toronto Maple Leafs practiced outdoors in Central Park today, and by the looks of it, the weather was pretty cold.

Guaranteed Phil Kessel wore a scarf.

Why the outdoor practice? Well, the Leafs are in New York to play the Rangers tomorrow, and with their dads along for the trip, coach Ron Wilson thought it would be fun to skate at the park’s famous rink.

“This seemed to be a much more romantic place to come and get back to your roots,” Wilson said, as per the Toronto Star. “Most of our guys, somewhere along the line, played hockey outdoors. This is a great opportunity.”

Not sure how the Leafs felt about their coach calling practice romantic, but they seemed to enjoy the experience.

“It’s awesome,” said defenseman Keith Aulie. “It’s something people don’t get the opportunity to do. And for our dads to have a glimpse of what we do is pretty amazing.”

As Colton Orr discovered, another nice thing about having your dad along for the trip is not having to tie your own skates.

Then Orr went on the ice, didn’t fall once and asked his dad if he saw it.