Auston Matthews heads for MRI as Toronto Maple Leafs await clarity
Photo credit: Bob Frid-Imagn Images
Auston Matthews needs an MRI, and the Toronto Maple Leafs suddenly feel that familiar knot in the stomach.
John Shannon reported Friday that there's still no update on Matthews' health, and that he's having an MRI today.
This all traces back to Thursday night, when Matthews left Toronto's 6-4 win over the Anaheim Ducks with a lower-body injury.
The hit came late in the second period, a knee-on-knee collision in the slot with Ducks captain Radko Gudas.
Matthews crumpled, then needed help getting off the ice, putting minimal weight on his left leg.
Toronto still found a way to finish the job, snapping an eight-game skid that had been dragging the whole room down.
Shannon's post is here.
Craig Berube said Matthews will be reevaluated Friday, which is coach-speak for «we need the imaging before we say anything real.»
The brutal part is Matthews was finally trending the right way, scoring a power-play goal Thursday that ended a 12-game goal drought.
He sits at 27-26-53 through 60 games, and even in a messy season, that's still the engine of Toronto's offense.
Auston Matthews injury puts Toronto Maple Leafs on edge
Leafs fans have been through enough «day to day» stories to know the waiting can feel worse than the news.
Tactically, you can't just swap his touches on the man advantage, because that one-timer threat changes how penalty kills tilt and cheat.
If he misses time, Toronto's top-six gets scrambled fast, and it puts more creation pressure on everyone who usually benefits from his gravity.
It also forces tougher matchups down the middle, because Matthews is the guy who takes the hard minutes and still finds offense.
Meanwhile, Gudas is scheduled to have a hearing with the league's Department of Player Safety, so that storyline isn't going away either.
The standings don't pause for MRIs, and the Leafs at 28-27-11 are still staring up at the wild card picture.
For now, it's simple, the Leafs got a win back, but they might have paid for it with their captain's knee.
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MARS 13|130 ANSWERS Auston Matthews heads for MRI as Toronto Maple Leafs await clarity Will Auston Matthews miss time after his MRI? | ||
| Yes | 129 | 99.2 % |
| No | 1 | 0.8 % |
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