Leafs Defenseman Jani Hakanpaa Address His Health Status as the Season Draws Near
Photo credit: Jerome Miron - USA Today Sports
Jani Hakanpaa has had a rocky summer and with the regular season right around the corner, Craig Berube has provided an update on the Leafs defenseman.
After an off-season shrouded in mystery over whether or not Hakanpaa was signed to the active roster, let alone if he was even dealing with an injury at all, the Toronto Maple Leafs were given good news about a month ago when he officially signed a one-year contract.
As the weeks went by, the Maple Leafs gave brief updates along the way. They were hopeful Hakanpaa would attend training camp near the end of September and although there was no clear sign on when he'd be cleared to play, the news in general was positive.
As we stand today, the updates are a little murky with the regular season set to begin shortly, but Hakanpaa was skating with the main group today for the very first time.
After practice, Berube was asked if Hakanpaa would be ready for game action any time soon but based on his answer, it seems like we might have to wait a little longer than expected:
"Yeah, that's a tough one. I can't really answer that question right now. We have to wait and see. We got a little bit of time yet and see where he gets to and where he's at, he's got to be comfortable with getting in there and playing a game."
On the flip side, Hakanpaa was asked how it felt to finally get out there and skate with the main group after a gruelling summer:
"It's been a long time coming, for sure, been doing a lot of work to get here. It was a lot of fun to actually be with the guys out there ... every day you take a little tiny step forward, and we've been on a good track."
Hoping to get some insight from the player himself, Hakanpaa was asked if practicing with the main group and ditching the red sweater meant that he was cleared skating:
"I think so. I think this was kind of like the first test to kind of see where we're at and how everything's going to go. We'll see where we are tomorrow morning and then we'll go from there again."
As things stand today, the expectations are that Hakanpaa will more than likely not be ready for the season opener on the 9th of October. As Berube noted, it's a tough question to answer because they want to see how he reacts to practices and game reps before making a final decision.
Hakanpaa suffered a knee injury near the end of the 2023-24 season while playing for the Dallas Stars. He missed the rest of the season and the playoffs. Over the last 3 years, Hakanpaa has 40 points, 136 PIMs, 668 hits and 363 blocks, and has averaged 18:02 TOI in 226 games.
| POLL | ||
OCTOBRE 2 | 1278 ANSWERS Leafs Defenseman Jani Hakanpaa Address His Health Status as the Season Draws Near When will Jani Hakanpaa make his Maple Leafs debut? | ||
| Season Opener | 135 | 10.6 % |
| By the End of October | 555 | 43.4 % |
| Sometime in November | 588 | 46 % |
| List of polls | ||
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