See more Toronto Sun on Google — save as a Preferred Source With any luck, the Maple Leafs’ ability to form chemistry will come as quickly as the first impression that Gavin McKenna made on Emil Andrae. “Unbelievably skilled player, fast, he moves really well on the ice, and he’s a pretty great with stickhandling,” Andrae said on Monday.

“It’s going to be fun to watch him.” Andrae, in his first media availability since the Leafs acquired him from the Philadelphia Flyers in a trade in June, met with reporters at the club’s annual charity golf classic on Monday at RattleSnake Point Golf Club in Milton. Also involved in media scrums being teed up were fellow newcomers Sergei Bobrovsky, Darren Raddysh and Nick Paul, and the same conclusion was reached by all: The informal captain’s skates, headed by Auston Matthews, that have been the lead-up to the start of training camp on Wednesday have been a good breeding ground for early gelling.

That’s crucial considering the Leafs have just two pre-season dates — a pair of split-squad games against Montreal on Saturday and against Ottawa on Sept. 23 — to brush up for the season opener on Sept.

29 at Scotiabank Arena versus the Canadiens. How do the early vibes feel?

“ T he biggest thing is getting out of your shell a little bit, talking to everyone,” Paul said. “There are a lot of different personalities when it comes to makeup of a hockey team, and it’s feeling those out.

“It has been great so far. The skates, hanging out.

We had a fantasy (football) draft. “It definitely makes it a lot easier when you’re hanging out with everyone.” As they look to put last season’s playoff miss further in the past, the Leafs won’t have much choice but to hit the ground running when the Canadiens visit, followed by a home match against Matthew Schaefer and the New York Islanders the next night to start the 2026-27 campaign.

Not that NHL players don’t arrive at camp in top shape anyway, but gone are the days that they had time to work out any on-ice kinks before the real fun began. We should have a firmer idea when coach Jim Hiller speaks to media at camp later this week, but you would think that with just a maximum of two games for each player, the lineup that he wants on the ice for the regular-season opener will be together for those contests.

Bobrovsky, who should be a little more fresh with a longer summer than what he usually experienced with the Florida Panthers — going to the Stanley Cup final three years in a row and winning twice can take a physical toll — didn’t have much concern. “I’ve been here for almost a month already, I train here, everybody is in the same circumstances,” Bobrovsky said.

“The regular season comes quick, so we have to take every minute on the ice, we have to have good quality.” It’s still a little hard to believe that the opener is just two weeks away. “Everyone’s happy, everyone’s smiling, chirping each other, doing the stuff us hockey players do,” Raddysh said.

“I think the guys are ready. They’ve been great.

They’ve been welcoming. It has been fun these last couple weeks.” After years of participating in the Battle of Florida between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Panthers, any wrinkles involving Raddysh and Paul, teammates with the Lightning, and Bobrovsky have been smoothed out.

While Bobrovsky said the three have “exchanged words” about the rivalry (good-naturedly), he also made a good point: Like him, Paul and Raddysh are coming from a solid hockey culture. As for Andrae, he represents a new avenue under general manager John Chayka.

Previous GM Brad Treliving liked his defencemen big and long — as he liked to say — and the 24-year-old Andrae is neither. At 5-foot-9 and 189 pounds, Andrae makes an impact with his smarts and decision-making, and will be relied upon to transport the puck with accuracy.

What can Andrae bring? “I would say I’m a pretty mobile defenceman,” Andrae said.

“ I can play the game 200 feet, and I like to move the puck, move my legs, and I think my vision is probably the biggest strength. I’m pretty small, so I’m pretty competitive.

“I’ve always been questionable (whether) I can play the game against these big players. I have to use my body in a smarter way.

I’m pretty competitive, and you have use it in a smart way to to to be a good player in this league. “I have more to improve, but I think I’m on a good path.” Is Leafs captain Auston Matthews engaged?

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Fellow Swede William Nylander has been a guide for Andrae and treated the latter to dinner on Sunday night. The Leafs will be well into the regular season before we know it.

Any opportunity to get into order with each other will be key. So far, from what the new guys are saying, things are falling into place.

tkoshan@postmedia.com X: @koshtorontosun