Leafs announce a roster call-up from the Toronto Marlies following Robertson injury
It seems as though, lately, all Leafs Nation is talking about is either how surprisingly well the Leafs are playing right now or that there's another injury that could cause some potential complications for the team.
Last night, during the Leafs' 5-0 win over the Los Angeles Kings, 21-year-old winger Nick Robertson went down with an unfortunate shoulder injury following a massive hit by LA's Matt Roy, which sent Robertson crashing into the boards very hard. Following the game, Leafs' head coach Sheldon Keefe confirmed the worst for Robertson, stating that this will not be a short-term absence and that the shoulder injury is, indeed, serious.
This morning, the Leafs announced that they have called up winger Joey Anderson from the AHL's Toronto Marlies. It was a bit of a surprising call-up, since the Leafs just had forward Semyon Der-Arguchintsev up with the team earlier this week for Tuesday's game in Dallas. Sheldon Keefe stated following the game in Dallas that he was unfortunately unable to properly evaluate SDA due to the fact that there was so much time that had passed between each of his shifts that it really made it difficult on the coaching staff to get a beat on how he played.
Nevertheless, Anderson is certainly just as deserving as SDA of a look at the NHL level, given his stellar play in the AHL this season. Through 21 games in the AHL this season, Anderson has racked up 11 goals and 8 assists for 19 points.
Anderson originally came over to Toronto in the summer of 2020 in the deal that saw forward Andreas Johnsson heading the other way in the deal to the New Jersey Devils. In 58 career NHL games (just 6 with the Leafs), Anderson has amassed 13 points, all coming during his time in New Jersey. This will be a good opportunity for Anderson to come up to the Leafs and stake his claim for a roster spot. With Robertson and Jarnkrok both out for the foreseeable future and the team's lukewarm feeling about Denis Malgin and Wayne Simmonds in a regular NHL role, a roster spot is ripe for the picking for one of these young Marlies standouts, whether it be Anderson, SDA or perhaps someone like Alex Steeves.
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 9 | 111 ANSWERS Leafs announce a roster call-up from the Toronto Marlies following Robertson injury Will Joey Anderson draw in on Saturday against the Flames? | ||
| Yes | 83 | 74.8 % |
| No, they'll ease him in | 28 | 25.2 % |
| List of polls | ||
