The Toronto Maple Leafs are in a downward spiral to start their regular season and while you can't pin it all (or even a good portion of it) on the loss of a depth forward, they could be getting Scott Laughton back in the fold shortly.
During his media availability after Wednesday's practice, Maple Leafs head coach said that Laughton could be back on the ice Thursday. It would be the first time he has skated since suffering a lower-body injury on October 2, before the season even started.
Berube thinks Laughton might skate tomorrow, which would be the first time since the forward suffered a lower-body injury on Oct. 2. "He's trending really well ... hopefully he is back on the ice with (the team) shortly." #Leafs
— Terry Koshan 🇺🇦 (@koshtorontosun) October 22, 2025
"He's trending really well ... hopefully he is back on the ice shortly," Berube told the media via The Toronto Sun's Terry Koshan.
Laughton has had rotten luck since being acquired by the Leafs from the Philadelphia Flyers at last season's trade deadline. The 31-year-old forward was not able to adjust to coming back to his hometown and just before training camp a couple months ago, he had to explain why his time in Toronto has gone so poorly so far.
With hope that he could turn it around and really be a stabilizing force down in the Leafs' bottom six, there was general optimism heading into the season. But unfortunately he was hurt after blocking a shot during preseason action against the Detroit Red Wings before he could even take the ice for a game that mattered.
There is no distinct timeline for when Laughton could return to game action, but with the Maple Leafs visiting his former team down in Philadelphia on November 1, that must be a date that's circled on the calendar and one that he hopes he is back with the team for.
Once Laughton returns, he can take up his position as the team's fourth-line center behind Nicolas Roy in the bottom six, and most likely be in the middle of Steven Lorentz and Calle Jarnkrok, at least to start out with. But how the Leafs are playing now, anything is really possible when it comes to the lineup.