The Toronto Maple Leafs training camp is expect to open on Tuesday.
While the Toronto Maple Leafs were originally expected to open camp today, the NHL has had a crazy amount of things to get in order (from covid protocols to a new CBA) and things are hopefully going to open up on Tuesday.
The Leafs will have a few weeks of training before taking on the Columbus Blue Jackets later this month in a pre-playoff playoff series, that is best-of-five.
For those of you wondering, points and statistics for those series will count towards career and year playoff stats, according to Ellioitte Friedman.
Toronto Maple Leafs Training Camp
The Leafs have a lot of questions heading into camp.
Questions like “Will Nick Robertson make the team?” and “How could the coach possibly justify playing Cody Ceci?”
But only one question truly matters:
What is the status of Auston Matthews health?
Three weeks ago Toronto Sun reporter Steve Simmons broke the story (to extreme controversy) that Auston Matthews had Covid 19.
The Toronto Maple Leafs declined to comment, but no one disputed the story.
Now, I am all for privacy, and if players want to keep their health to themselves, I don’t care. I only hope that Matthews has a speedy recovery and that he and his family are doing alright.
But, Auston Matthews is the Toronto Maple Leafs franchise player.
His health status is THE biggest issue currently facing the team, and whether or not Matthews can play in the playoffs this year is a pretty important hockey question.
If Auston Matthews is healthy, the Leafs are a heavy favorite to beat Columbus and one of the three best teams in the NHL (goalies depending) along with Tampa and Vegas.
But if Matthews can’t play, the Leafs aren’t even close to the same team. Matthews was in the hunt for his first Hart Trophy as league MVP may have won the goal scoring title had the season finished as scheduled.
With respect to Matthews privacy, an update on his health situation is something every Leafs fan is on the edge of their seat waiting for.
To be clear, the guys healthy is infinitely more important than my favorite team’s chances of winning a trophy, but it doesn’t make me want to know if he’s going to play any less.
We hope Matthews is doing well and eagerly await an official update.