Auston Matthews’ injury woes continue as Craig Berube provides latest on Maple Leafs star (Imagn)
Auston Matthews has not played since Nov. 3. The Toronto Maple Leafs captain has been absent from the lineup and practice since then, continuously being listed as “day-to-day” without a clear timetable. That won’t change with the latest update, as things have apparently not gotten any better.
According to hockey insider David Alter, Matthews won’t play the one game the Maple Leafs have this week. Head coach Craig Berube said as much, and he revealed that Matthews hasn’t been on the ice at all. He did specify that Matthews isn’t regressing.
Craig Berube says Auston Matthews will not play against Vegas this week. Has not been on the ice the last few days. Says he’s not getting worse.
— David Alter (@dalter) November 18, 2024
Craig Berube said:
“It’s a bit of a holding pattern, but he’s not getting worse, so that’s a good thing. It’s just taking time. He’s doing what he needs to do to get back in the lineup and get healthy, and our team just needs to push on.”
🚨🎙️ Craig Berube on Matthews:
“It’s a bit of a holding pattern, but he’s not getting worse, so that’s a good thing. It’s just taking time. He’s doing what he needs to do to get back in the lineup and get healthy, and our team just needs to push on.”
— Leafslatest (@Leafslatest) November 18, 2024
Matthews has had this injury since the preseason, but he was able to play anyway. That finally caught up to him on Nov. 3 against the Minnesota Wild, and now the team wants its captain to get past this before they bring him back.
The Maple Leafs haven’t struggled without Auston Matthews
Despite missing Auston Matthews, the Toronto Maple Leafs have not slipped in the standings. In fact, they’ve caught fire. Mitch Marner and company have stepped up, with the team going 5-1 in Matthews’ absence.
The lone loss was a stunner shutout to the Ottawa Senators, but they’ve beaten the Edmonton Oilers, Washington Capitals and others during this hot streak.
Auston Matthews has been out since Nov. 3 (Imagn)
Their depth will continue to be tested as long as Matthews is on the shelf, but they’ve avoided major issues. They just don’t know how much longer they’ll have to continue like this.
The Leafs play the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday, but their next game after that is not until Sunday, so there’s some time off. This is a softer part of their schedule, and Matthews has some time to recover without missing as many games.
