Toronto Maple Leafs Injury Report and Update

Ilya Mikheyev

The most serious injury to hit the Toronto Maple Leafs during the 2019–2020 season was rookie Ilya Mikheyev.

On December 27, 2019, Souper-man suffered a severed artery and tendons in his wrist after taking a skate to exposed skin. It was later reported that the Russian forward underwent surgery in New Jersey (with Kyle Dubas staying by his side) and was expected to be out for at least three months.

At the time of his injury, Mikheyev had recorded 23 points in 39 games (per NHL.com) coming off a very successful Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) season.

Although Mikheyev is a rookie by NHL standards, he has much experience playing professional hockey. He has played for Avangard Omsk in the KHL since 2015 and accumulated 120 points in 224 games.

After the scary fluke of an injury, many Leafs were fitted for the sleeves (per Jonas Siegel) although a few complained that they would impede in their game.

While no one can force the Toronto Maple Leafs to wear sleeves, just like Leo Komarov will not wear a visor properly,  it would be in their best interest with the way the season is going.

In some more positive news, the 25 year old recently skated for the first time since December 27 and seems close to recovery. He is expected back this season at some point.

Morgan Rielly

Perhaps one of the most devastating losses for the Toronto Maple Leafs is the foot injury that kneecapped Morgan Rielly‘s season.

At the time of his injury, Rielly recorded 27 points in 46 games, coming off his previous career high of 52 points (per NHL.com).  The Leafs had almost a 70% winning percentage with Rielly in the lineup and Keefe as the coach.

Rielly’s injury came in the new year during a game against the surging Florida Panthers.

Although his fractured foot did not derail his game, he was given a CT scan and subsequently written off for eight weeks.

However, the Vancouver native isn’t new to the injury bug, in fact I’d say they were good friends. In 2017, he suffered a lower-body injury in a game against the Buffalo Sabres, and in 2018 an upper-body injury resulted in him being placed on injured reserve.

Not only does Rielly have a leadership position within the team (and likely would’ve become captain if JT wasn’t around) but he also runs the top D-man pairing. As the Leafs defensive woes continue to lose them points, Leaf fans cannot wait for the return of number 44.

Hopefully this rest can also help relieve his “aching injuries” which seems like a sentence an 80 year old should say, not an athlete in their prime.

Rielly’s time away will show the Leafs D-core how to step up, take responsibility for their mismanagement, and grow. It must be hard carrying a team when you’re only 25 years old yourself.

Cody Ceci

As most fans are aware, former Senators Cody Ceci,  Ben Harpur, Aaron Luchuk and a 2020 third-round draft pick joined the Toronto Maple Leafs on July 1, 2019, in exchange for Nikita Zaitsev, Connor Brown and Michael Carcone.

Meant to be added for blue line depth, Ceci signed a one-year, $4.5 million contract with the Leafs on July 4, 2019.

However, his large contract does not mean he is a large player. As with many Leafs under the Babcock regime, Ceci has been misused and underdeveloped.

He is often caught puck watching, takes poor shots, has heavy feet, and causes lots of turnovers to the benefit of the opponent.

Prior to his draft, Ceci drew criticism for his lack of physicality and puck handling skills and at the NHL level, his results are average and under whelming.

However, after replacing Babcock, Sheldon Keefe continues to use Ceci in the top D-man pairing and hurts the Leafs at 5v5.

After GM Kyle Dubas traded for Kyle Clifford and goalie Jake Campbell, the ever polarizing Cody Ceci was placed on injured reserve due to an ankle injury. At the time of his injury, Ceci had recorded eight points in 54 games (per NHL.com).

Ceci returned to the Leafs lineup on March 6, 2020, in a 2–1 loss to the Anaheim Ducks. Although his ankle may be healed, his mediocre season continues to leave a bad taste in Toronto Maple Leaf fans mouths.

Andreas Johnsson

Andreas Johnsson (AKA Mango) finally found consistency at the NHL level during the 2018–19 season. He played 73 games during the regular season and recorded 20 goals and 23 assists for 43 points (per NHL.com).

He had previously played nine regular season games for the Toronto Maple Leafs but only recorded three points over that time. Once he was reassigned to the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League (AHL), Johnsson recorded 26 goal and had a season high 54 points.

Due to success at both the AHL and NHL level, Johnsson cracked the Leafs lineup again under Coach Mike Babcock for the 2019–2020 season.

The former Jack A. Butterfield Trophy winner had recorded 21 points in 43 games (per NHL.com) before his knee injury in a game against the Dallas Stars. Sheldon Keefe reported that this injury would not be short term (per Chris Johnston) and the blonde is expected to miss six month to recover from knee surgery.

Johnsson’s injury has required the Leafs to search deeper into their organization for depth.

While it may allow for some diamonds in the rough to shine and make their NHL debuts, the second-line winger will be a big gaping hole. With the recent acquisition of Denis Malgin from the Florida Panthers (4–8–12), the Leafs are clearly looking for younger, cheaper talent who they can mold to fit their future plans.

Jake Muzzin

The latest injury to the Toronto Maple Leafs lineup is also one of their newer acquisitions. Former LA Kings defenceman Jake Muzzin broke his hand during a game agains the Tampa Bay Lightning in late February.

In his place, the Leafs recalled defenceman Calle Rosen from the Toronto Marlies (who has a career total of 19 NHL games played per NHL.com).

Muzzin is also not new to the injury bug; in 2018, he suffered an  injury during a win over the Calgary Flames, and this is his second trip to the I.R this season.

Of course, there was never a good time to lose Muzzin. In an ideal season, the entire lineup would be healthy for all 82 games.

The former 141st overall draft pick has truly made people regret choosing him so late.

As with Morgan Rielly, Muzzin was a backbone to the Leafs blue line and his being out of the lineup hurts the team immensely.

However, also similarly to Rielly, this will give Muzzin a chance to rest up for the push to the playoffs.