As troubling as the Maple Leafs’ fortunes were going into the NHL all-star break, they’ll certainly need a healthy Auston Matthews coming out of it.
A previously unreported ‘wrist condition’ has now sidelined Toronto’s leading scorer from any on-ice activity during this weekend’s all-star game festivities in St. Louis, either the skills competition or the 3-on-3 tournament itself where Matthews, linemate Mitch Marner and goaltender Frederik Andersen were to play for the Atlantic Division.
Matthews, named to his fourth straight all-star game, will still attend off-ice events in St. Louis, while undergoing treatment on the wrist, the club’s public relations department tweeted Wednesday night. They’re listing the 34-goal centre as day-to-day with Toronto’ next game Monday in Nashville.
Brady Tkachuk of the Ottawa Senators was named as Matthews’ all-star game replacement.
Matthews’s agent Judd Moldaver told TSN’s Darren Dregr that the wrist problem persisted for at least the past three weeks and a joint decision was made to rest it.
On a team already hampered by injuries, broken feet with defencemen Morgan Rielly and Jake Muzzin, and wrist artery surgery for winger Ilya Mikheyev, an extended absence for Matthews would make the climb back into playoff contention that much more difficult. The Leafs lost five of their last six games before the all-star break and watched with unease as division and conference rivals won the majority of games in hand they held on Toronto, bumping the club out of a playoff spot.
Muzzin is closest to returning.
Matthews was beginning to raise excitement with a possible run at 50 goals, needing 16 in Toronto’s remaining 33 games to become the first Leaf since Dave Andreychuk in 1993-94 to hit the milestone, while Rick Vaive’s club mark of 54 is also in reach. Matthews was shut out the past two games, which might have been a hint of his wrist issue, but he also had 16 shots on net in those two contests.
Matthews had 40 goals as a rookie, but injures the next two seasons held him to 62 and 68 games, translating to 34 and 37 goals, respectively.
He would likely have participated in shooting-specific skills contests Friday night that could affect his wrist, if not risking it in the game itself, though there’s little if any hitting in the four-team tournament. In 2003, Mats Sundin was the last Leaf not to play in an all-star game because of injury.
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