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Insiders Provide Clarity on the Nature of Auston Matthews’ Injury
Specifics around the injury to Auston Matthews have been hard to come by, but we finally got some on Thursday.
Auston Matthews missed his fourth consecutive game on Thursday night because of a lower-body injury suffered on November 11 in Boston, and his timeline to return is still relatively unknown. The Toronto Maple Leafs have managed to tread water thus far, going 1-1-2 in his absence, but they would, of course, like the captain back in the lineup sooner rather than later.
Nobody truly knows the specifics of Matthews’ injury and how it actually happened, much like last year’s nagging upper-body ailment, and the prior postseason’s injury that kept him out of Games 5 and 6 against the Bruins.
That constant secrecy has started to frustrate fans and even analysts as the superstar center continues to be sidelined, so TSN insiders Darren Dreger and Chris Johnston opened up with more detail about what Matthew is going through during ‘OverDrive’ on Thursday.
Is it the same lingering injury he dealt with throughout 2024-25? “It’s unrelated, it’s not, 100%,” Dreger said. “It’s a muscle type of injury I was told, you know, one that responds to rest a little bit, which is why I think it took a little longer,” Johnston added.
The 28-year-old had yet to look like himself even when healthy this season, tallying 14 points (nine goals, five assists) in 17 games played.
When Will Matthews Return?
While nothing is certain when it comes to a Matthews return, signs point to next Wednesday night in Columbus against the Blue Jackets as a date to circle.
He’s unlikely to play Saturday night in Montreal, which would then give him another three days of rest and recovery as the Maple Leafs have a brief gap in between games.
Dreger and Johnston went on to mention that if things drag out longer than that or even beyond next weekend in Washington and Pittsburgh, then questions will have to be answered because major concerns are going to start mounting.
We’re not at the point yet, so there’s no need to panic, but there’s no doubt this is a situation that Toronto and the rest of the league, quite frankly, will be keeping an eye on moving forward.
Next: Maple Leafs Insider Floats Unthinkable Auston Matthews Trade
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