Maple Leafs’ Craig Berube gives cryptic answer on Auston Matthews injury absence

The Toronto Maple Leafs are coming off a 4-0 victory over the New Jersey Devils. The team has been dealing with a litany of injuries, including one to Auston Matthews. He was originally declared day-to-day and seen as a game-time decision, but after missing the game, head coach Craig Berube provided a cryptic response regarding Matthews’ proximity to playing.

“Fairly close. But, we’ll see how he is tomorrow. Hopefully, everything subsides a little bit more and see if he can get on the ice tomorrow. That would be good,” Berube said after a long pause, according to David Alter of The Hockey News.

Matthews was injured during the Sunday overtime loss to the Detroit Red Wings, as he suffered a lower-body injury while blocking a shot during the game. It was the sixth game that the American missed this season. He had missed five games earlier this season. Matthews is tied for the team lead in goals this year, finding the back of the net 15 times this season. He has also added 12 helpers, placing him fourth on the team in points.

The star forward has also been a major factor on the powerplay this season, with three goals and three assists. Missing Matthews was not a major detriment to the man advantage on Tuesday night. In the first period, Bobby McMann scored on the power play, giving the Leafs a 1-0 lead. The team scored on one out of three of their powerplay opportunities in the game.

With the victory, the Leafs moved to 18-15-6 on the campaign, which places them tied for sixth in the Atlantic Division. The team hopes to have Matthews back in their next game, a home date with the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday.

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