Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews has been absent from practice due to an upper-body injury. Coach Craig Berube told the media that the situation is “not serious.” Moreover, Berube reassured the media that Matthews “should be fine,” according to ESPN.
All right. Let’s take Berube at face value. Auston Matthews is dealing with bumps and bruises. Nothing serious, just erring on the side of caution. After all, the team has no reason to push Matthews now. If anything, it makes more sense to shut him down now, in preseason, than once the regular season begins.
However, there’s no word if Auston Matthews will be back in the lineup for Saturday night’s game against Montreal. Again, if Matthews misses that game, it wouldn’t be the end of the world.
But then again, perhaps it’s just me going full-blown conspiracy theorist, here. What if Matthews’ current injury situation is linked to the mysterious illness that kept him out against Boston during last season’s playoffs?
Perhaps I’m reading too much into the situation. But considering how crucial this season is to everyone on the Toronto Maple Leafs, the team cannot afford to go without Matthews for any extended period. As such, fans can only hope that Berube is not merely downplaying the situation.
Hopefully, Auston Matthews’ injury situation is nothing to be concerned about. Perhaps Matthews is just sore after the summer layoff and the team doesn’t want a bruise here or there to become a nagging issue once the season begins.
Let’s hope it’s just an abundance of precaution.
Auston Mattews injury could lead to a big opportunity for Max Domi
During media availability on Wednesday, Berube addressed questions regarding Auston Matthews’ situation. Berube called Matthews’ absence from practice as nothing more than “maintenance.”
Reporters then asked Berube about who would step in for Matthews. The answer was: Max Domi. NHL.com quoted Berube describing Domi as a “versatile guy.” Berube added that Domi has a solid track record at centre, although that isn't exactly the case.
Moreover, Berube underscored how Domi has played all three forward positions throughout his career, making him a good choice to fill in for Matthews.
This situation opens up a unique opportunity for Domi. In Matthews’ absence, Domi has been playing down the middle with Mitch Marner and Easton Cowan flanking him.
Now, fans shouldn’t expect this line to become a regular thing. It’s more than anything, a stopgap solution for the time being. Max Domi is a significantly more valuable player to the Leafs if he's playing on the wing, but his versaltility is still a helpful thing.
But it does raise an interesting question: If the William Nylander experiment at centre fails, could Domi move back to centre? This is likely if Nylander fails, but you have to think the Leafs would have looked harder for a centre if they didn't believe in Nylander. Domi just isn't a good option at centre ice, because even playing extremely sheltered minutes last season, Domi struggled to win his minutes. His defensive deficiencies are why he's always rated out close to replacement level despite being a world-class passer and an above average overall offensive player.
Overall, this audition could be the most important one for Max Domi, but the important thing is that Auston Matthews is healthy and ready to go when the season begins.