Maple Leafs Provide Auston Matthews Update; Also May Be Missing Key Defenseman

After missing the last couple of weeks due to injury, Leafs captain Auston Matthews finally returned to practice on Monday, but departed the session after about 25 minutes.

With a return appearing to be fairly imminent, Matthews' return to practice on Monday led to some line shuffling, with Matthews rotating in and out for line rushes with David Kampf, centering Matthew Knies and William Nylander.

For those who are holding onto hope that the reigning Rocket Richard Trophy winner will be back in the lineup on Tuesday, though, unfortunately that isn't going to be the case.

On Monday, following practice, head coach Craig Berube told the media in Toronto that Matthews would not be back in the lineup on Tuesday against the Islanders.

Unfortunately, that's not the only bad news for Leafs Nation, as a key member of the Leafs' blueline may also be sidelined for the clash against the Isles tomorrow night.

Per the Maple Leafs' official PR account on Twitter/X, Oliver Ekman-Larsson is currently out with an illness.

The Leafs just can't seem to catch a break lately when it comes to staying healthy. Yes, every teams have ups and downs when it comes to health during an 82-game season, but you'd be hard-pressed to find a team with more man games lost to injury/illness than the Leafs this season.

Anthony Stolarz is also still sidelined for the Maple Leafs, and will likely miss most or all of the month of January.

The Toronto Sun's Terry Koshan suggested on Monday that we could very well end up seeing rookie goalie Artur Akhtyamov make his NHL debut for the Maple Leafs at some point, given the current struggles in net in Toronto.

The Leafs may be coming off of a loss to Washington, but they are still 6-4-0 in their last 10. Getting Matthews back should help, but losing additional pieces will continue to test their depth. Let's hope the team is up to the challenge as we prepare to enter a new year.