Don’t expect Toronto Maple Leafs star centre Auston Matthews back anytime soon.
Head coach Craig Berube said Wednesday that the team captain will not play in the second half of a home-and-home series against the New York Islanders on Thursday.
While Matthews said he’s making progress dealing with an upper-body injury, he does not have a date in mind for his return. He did skate with the team at practice on Wednesday.
“Taking it day by day here. Feeling good, feeling better every single day,” Berube said. “Just going to continue and hope for that positive progression.”
Matthews aggravated an upper-body injury against the Buffalo Sabres on Dec. 20. Since then, he has missed five games. He was placed on long-term injured reserve on Tuesday, retroactively to the game against the Sabres.
“It’s frustrating not playing. [I am] trying to be mindful of everything that goes on, and it’s nice to still be around the guys a lot. Being able to take part in practice is big, especially when you’ve been out for a little bit,” Matthews said.
The current stretch is the second significant layoff of the season for the 27-year-old, who also missed nine consecutive games in November.
Unclear when Matthews will be healthy enough to play
When asked if he’ll be able to put this injury behind him this season, Matthews said: “I don’t know, I hope so; that’s obviously the goal.
“It’s tricky with these things sometimes. It’s a physical sport, it’s a contact sport, so things happen out there sometimes that are out of your control.”
Matthews, who scored 69 goals to win the Rocket Richard Trophy last season, has 11 goals and 12 assists in 24 games this season. Toronto has won two of the five games minus Matthews, including Tuesday’s 3-1 victory over the Islanders.
Head coach Craig Berube says there’s no timeline for Matthews’ return to the lineup.
“Seeing him out here in practice and competing in a full practice is progress,” Berube said. “I do check in with him. I don’t bother him too much. When he’s available, he’ll let us know.
“Right now, the situation we’re in with him, I’m preparing the team to play without him. We’ve got a game tomorrow, and he’s not in that game tomorrow.”
Toronto is coming off a 3-1 win against the Islanders on New Year’s Eve. The Maple Leafs are travelling to New York for a rematch on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET.
With files from Lucas Casaletto of CityNews
