Leafs' depth at forward being tested after injuries to O'Reilly, Tavares and Matthews this weekend
For the Leafs, their most recent Western Canadian road swing left a lot to be desired, going 1-2-0 over a 3-game stretch that saw them beat the Calgary Flames, but struggle mightily against the Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks.
Unfortunately, the Buds weren't just sent back East with their tails tucked between their legs - they are also dealing with a few injuries. Ryan O'Reilly, as we know, had suffered an injury to his hand/finger and was spotted leaving the arena in Vancouver in a splint. Auston Matthews also missed some time during the 1st and 2nd periods after taking a hard off of the inside of his right knee. Captain John Tavares was also rocked twice by Canucks defenseman Tyler Myers and was skating as an extra in practice on Monday, which could mean that he'll miss Tuesday's game in New Jersey as well.
At this point, Matthews is expected to play against the Devils on Tuesday, but with O'Reilly and Tavares both likely to miss the game, the Leafs' new-found forward depth will absolutely be tested. Thankfully, the two other forwards that Kyle Dubas went out and brought in before the deadline, Sam Lafferty and Noel Acciari, can both play center if need be. The team has also called up Pontus Holmberg, which will help them tread water until ROR and JT are ready to return.
The biggest question here is whether or not Matthews is playing because he's healthy or if he's just playing out of necessity now with the injuries to O'Reilly and Tavares. If Matthews is not 100% and is still intending to play, I have a hard time believing that it's the best move for the organization as a whole with the playoffs just around the corner.
Leave it to the Leafs to amass a very strong 1, 2, 3 punch down the middle in Matthews, Tavares and O'Reilly, only to have all 3 pieces banged up the day after the trade deadline. Not that it would have changed Dubas' plans, because he did well to acquire the pieces that he did - it's just tremendously horrible luck more than anything else. Maybe this team really is cursed.
