The Toronto Maple Leafs have already been without captain Auston Matthews for one game, and the superstar could be facing an even longer absence.
There's no guarantee that Matthews will return to the lineup when the Leafs welcome the Detroit Red Wings and Montreal Canadiens to Scotiabank Arena this weekend, head coach Craig Berube confirmed.
“He's doing okay,” Berube said on Thursday, per NHL.com's Dave McCarthy. “It's still a day-to-day thing right now. That's really the update I have for you. [If he plays this weekend] is to be determined still. It's hard for me to answer that question knowing what I know right now with him today. Look, I can't tell you what's going to happen tomorrow or the next day. I wish I could, but I can't.”
The Leafs will play the Red Wings on Friday night before the Canadiens come to town for Hockey Night in Canada on Saturday. Matthews didn't practice on Thursday, meaning his availability against Detroit is at least in serious jeopardy.
He hasn't played since a 2-1 overtime loss to the Minnesota Wild on Sunday; he played 22:12 in that contest. Berube also confirmed that the upper-body injury is not related to the wrist he had surgery on in the summer of 2021, per McCarthy.
The Leafs are coming off a huge 4-0 victory over the Boston Bruins on Tuesday — the first time in the last nine regular-season meetings that Toronto had beaten Boston.
It was an encouraging triumph, but the team could still badly use Matthews back in the lineup. He's had a challenging start, managing just five goals and 11 points over 13 contests.
Auston Matthews is having a tough year
Matthews certainly hasn't been Toronto's best player in 2024-25. Whether that's due to the injury he's currently dealing with or just a slow start is up in the air, but the Leafs really need him healthy regardless.
Although they managed to finally defeat the Bruins — in the regular-season, at least — the Leafs are having trouble scoring goals. Despite sitting second in the Atlantic Division, Toronto has lost five of eight and managed just 23 goals in that span.
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Matthews scored 69 goals last season to win the Rocket Richard Trophy, and it should be only a matter of time before the superstar gets going.
“We are talking about the best player in the world here. You want him in the lineup every night possible. There is no replacing him,” said teammate Max Pacioretty, who was very involved in Tuesday's win.
“There is a boost when you know he is in here doing everything he can to come back and help the team. Maybe that gives you a boost in a sense where we want to make sure we do right by him; he's our leader. But once again, we are talking about the best player in the world. It's hard to justify.”
Now 7-5-2 and still hanging around the top of the division, the Leafs will look to continue chasing the first-place Florida Panthers this weekend. Puck drop for both Leafs-Wings on Friday and Leafs-Canadiens on Saturday is set for just past 7:00 p.m. ET.
