Latest Development Regarding Auston Matthews Good News for the Maple Leafs

Ahead of Friday's game against the Detroit Red Wings, Leafs head coach Craig Berube confirmed that Matthews would be out of action this weekend as he continues to manage his nagging upper-body injury.

Although he didn't play on Friday night, Sportsnet's Nick Kypreos revealed during the broadcast that there was no structural damage with Matthews' injury. With that news, it became clear that a return is on the horizon.

Things appear to have taken a very quick and positive turn for the 27-year-old as he returned to the ice Saturday for the Leafs' morning skate dawning a grey extras jersey.

Matthews skated for about 30 minutes, according to Elliotte Friedman, which indicates that he could be returning sooner than many fans expected him to.

After Saturday, the Leafs will not return to action until New Years Eve when they take on the New York Islanders in an afternoon game before playing three games in four days beginning Thursday, followed by another weekend back-to-back.

Given the Leafs' schedule next week, and the fact Matthews is skating again, the most likely return date would be Thursday. If the Leafs use the same strategy they used when he returned at the end of November, allowing him to get a couple of full practices in before returning to the lineup will be the game plan.