The Toronto Maple Leafs have seemed to be hit by an illness bug. Dakota Joshua, who did not participate in yesterday's 5-1 loss against the Oilers, has been hit by an illness. William Nylander was also questionable in yesterday's contest, but played through the illness.
Joshua's season with the Leafs
Dakota Joshua has had an up-and-down season with the Maple Leafs this year. Joshua started the year out slow, struggling to build chemistry and couldn't quite find his groove. He was a healthy scratch on November 28th. The healthy scratch served as a wake-up call for the 29-year old as he has played a lot better since. In 29 games this season, Joshua has posted 5 goals and 4 assists for 9 points with a -2 rating.
The Dearborn native has looked more comfortable and has fit in well with Nicolas Roy and Bobby McMann. Since the three have formed a line, they have all looked better and formed chemistry. Brad Treliving has received a lot of well-deserved criticism for his off-season acquisitions, but with Roy and Joshua forming chemistry, those two have quieted the chatter a little bit.
The illness in the Leafs locker room
The Maple Leafs are going to have to watch for the illness going around the locker room. We have already seen it affect two players, and for a team that is still struggling with injuries, this could cost them more of the season. There is still no timeline on shutdown defenceman Chris Tanev and Brandon Carlo, who recently had surgery. Anthony Stolarz is going to be out long-term with an upper-body injury, but Joseph Woll is going to make a return to the lineup really soon.
The Maple Leafs are back in action Tuesday night, where they will host the Chicago Blackhawks. It is expected that Joshua will be back in the lineup by then, but we will see how his sickness goes. Joseph Woll is also expected to be back with the team for Tuesday night's game.