Maple Leafs provide new information on Auston Matthews' nagging injury

Auston Matthews suffered a lower-body injury last week following a hit from behind from Nikita Zadorov, and it has kept him out of the Toronto Maple Leafs' lineup.

Overall, Matthews was struggling up until that point. He had nine goals in 17 games and a total of 14 points. His production has been on a decline, and there is concern about what has happened to his game.

With that being said, the captain was on the ice earlier today, and it had fans excited for his potential return. However, it should be noted that Matthews will not play tonight against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Thankfully, after morning skate, head coach Craig Berube spoke to the media, where he gave a critical update on Matthews and his condition.

Unfortunately, Berube did not provide a timeline for Matthews' return. Instead, the head coach simply noted that he is progressing, but we don't know anything beyond that.

For the Toronto Maple Leafs, this is disappointing news, especially since the team currently has a record of 9-9-2, and is seventh in the Atlantic Division.

Tonight's game against the Columbus Blue Jackets should prove to be a great opportunity for the Leafs to pick up a win and showcase their prowess.

Having said that, the Leafs have lost to some weak teams this season, so it is impossible to say how this is actually going to play out.

Fans will just have to take a wait-and-see approach here, which might just turn out to be incredibly anxiety-inducing.