The Maple Leafs have moved Auston Matthews to injured reserve along with his upper-body damage retroactive to Nov. 3, the crew announced. They’re utilizing the open spot to reinstate ahead Connor Dewar from his LTIR conditioning mortgage and add him to the energetic roster.
The IR placement solely minimally impacts Matthews’ timeline for a return. Head coach Craig Berube
told reporters that the celebrity would miss his second straight sport Friday in opposition to the Crimson Wings and that he was uncertain for Saturday’s sport in opposition to the Canadiens. He’s been dominated out in opposition to Montreal because of the transfer to IR however might return for Tuesday’s matchup in opposition to the Senators. He’ll miss at the very least three video games with the ailment, which he’s been enjoying by means of for a very good chunk of the season.
Meanwhile, Dewar was one of two players for the Leafs in the AHL on LTIR conditioning stints. At the beginning of the month, they assigned both he and defenseman Jani Hakanpää to the minors as they every acquired their ft again beneath them after offseason surgical procedures — in Dewar’s case, a shoulder process. LTIR conditioning stints can solely last as long as three video games or six days, and the time constraint ends Friday. The dearth of stories relating to Hakanpää signifies he’s not totally cleared to return to full-time motion and can stay on LTIR for a tad longer.
Matthews’ IR placement buys the Leafs a bit little bit of time, however they’ll nonetheless have to make a roster transfer when the captain is able to return subsequent week and one other one when Hakanpää is ultimately able to play. They’ve $1.83M left of their LTIR pool after Friday’s transactions, with Hakanpää, Calle Järnkrok and Dakota Mermis nonetheless on the listing.
In his lone look on his conditioning stint, Dewar had a aim and an help in what amounted to his first AHL motion because the 2021-22 marketing campaign. Acquired from the Wild finally season’s commerce deadline, Dewar had a aim and 4 assists in 17 video games for Toronto down the stretch and averted arbitration over the summer time with a one-year, $1.18M settlement.
The high-energy 5-foot-10 ahead can play each heart and wing and was a fixture on the Leafs’ penalty kill to shut out 2023-24, averaging practically two-and-a-half minutes per sport shorthanded. He’s projected to function a wholesome scratch in opposition to Detroit tonight whereas Steven Lorentz, David Kämpf and Ryan Reaves stay in fourth-line roles, however he might get an opportunity to play in opposition to the Habs on Saturday.
