The Toronto Maple Leafs got a brutal injury in Friday night’s loss to the Buffalo Sabres. The 5-3 loss was enough to set Toronto fans heading for the hills. William Nylander leaving the game in the third period was.
Nylander took a cross-check to the midsection from the Sabres’ Jason Zucker. The hit left Nylander evidently shaken up. The Maple Leafs star struggled to get off the ice. He left the game and did not return.
Here’s a look at the play:
Following the game, there was no real update regarding Nylander’s condition, as Luke Fox noted. Coach Craig Berube did not rule out the possibility of Nylander playing on Saturday in the second leg of the Maple Leafs-Sabres home-and-home set.
However, there is an alarming concern regarding the possibility of a significant ailment on Nylander’s part. The hit didn’t seem overly dangerous. However, there’s no telling what would have truly happened.
Perhaps removing Nylander from the game was just a precautionary measure. Hopefully, it was just a case of the Swedish star getting the wind knocked out of him. At worst, he’ll be sore in the morning. If it’s the type of thing some Ibuprofen can fix, then Maple Leafs fans will breathe a sigh of relief.
Otherwise, Leafs Nation may have to brace for a period without Nylander in the lineup. The club is already down several regulars, including defensemen Morgan Rielly and Chris Tanev. So, there could be some challenging times ahead for the club.
Maple Leafs Depth Forward Fills in for Nylander
Dakota Joshua filled in for Nylander on the top line late in Friday night’s game. The Maple Leafs had experimented with a new top line consisting of Auston Matthews, William Nylander, and Bobby McMann. The line played well enough, leading to some solid scoring chances.
Nylander scored a beautiful breakaway goal in the first period, moments after the Sabres had opened the scoring. The trio seemed to gel as the game went on. However, Nylander’s absence forced Berube to juggle lines yet again.
So, late in the game, Joshua got a couple of looks alongside Matthews, including a shift during a late power play by the Maple Leafs.
Joshua is the sort of big-bodied forward that could provide support to Matthews. Though Joshua lacks the high-end speed and talent Nylander has, Joshua could be a decent fill-in if Nylander misses any time moving forward.
Toronto Dealing with Multiple Injuries
The Toronto Maple Leafs are dealing with an unusually high number of injuries. On top of Nylander’s ailments, Toronto is down two of its top four defensemen. That situation led to Philippe Myers and Dakota Mermis filling in. However, the makeshift bottom pair didn’t look quite so good against the Sabres on Friday night.
Additionally, center Scott Laughton has yet to play this season. His loss has forced the Maple Leafs to move lines around to find the right chemistry. The good news is that Laughton could be back soon enough. If so, Laughton’s return would give the Leafs some much-needed stability in the bottom-six.
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