Maple Leafs Captain Auston Matthews Claps Back at Media After Recent Speculative Injury Report
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Photo credit: � Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images
Ahead of his return to the lineup on Saturday, Leafs captain Auston Matthews responded to rumours about his injury and called out reporters for being too nosey.
Matthews has not played since being placed on injured reserve on November 8th while dealing with an upper-body injury.
What was supposed to be a day-to-day injury has forced Matthews to miss 9 games and led him to Germany to receive treatment.
Friday, however, controversial Toronto Sun reporter Steve Simmons attempted to reveal Matthews' injury through a speculative report based around the specializations of the doctor who did the work on Matthews in Germany.
The Toronto media caught wind of the story and following Friday's practice, Matthews was asked about his injury and the secrecy of it. In response, Matthews was very blunt and even called out reporters for being a little too nosey at times.
"I don't think there's really any secrecy. Like, I don't think we did anything outside of the rules of providing information to you guys in the NHL. So I think it just gets a little blown out of proportion with the marketplace and you guys being a little bit nosey. But, in my mind, we haven't done anything secret.
I think it's my choice whether or not I'm going to share the extent of injury. You look around the league, lower-body injury, upper-body injury on every single team. I think it's just been made out to be a bigger deal than it is," Matthews insisted.
"I don't really care. It's up for you guys to talk about it and do your thing. But, you know, in the end, I'm just going to focus on myself and focus on the team and being the best that I can."
I think it's my choice whether or not I'm going to share the extent of injury. You look around the league, lower-body injury, upper-body injury on every single team. I think it's just been made out to be a bigger deal than it is," Matthews insisted.
"I don't really care. It's up for you guys to talk about it and do your thing. But, you know, in the end, I'm just going to focus on myself and focus on the team and being the best that I can."
The three-time Rocket Richard winner admitted earlier in the week that the injury bothered him during the pre-season and got worse over time, even though they tried to manage it.
The first-overall pick from 2016 had just 11 points through 13 games before being placed on injured reserve, but will rejoin the Leafs on Saturday against the Tampa Bay Lightning and hopefully providing a spark to their 5-on-5 offense with the injury now behind him.
| POLL | ||
NOVEMBRE 30 | 2373 ANSWERS Maple Leafs Captain Auston Matthews Claps Back at Media After Recent Speculative Injury Report Do you think players and teams should be required to share specifics of injuries? | ||
| Yes | 687 | 29 % |
| No | 1497 | 63.1 % |
| I'm not sure | 189 | 8 % |
| List of polls | ||
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