TORONTO -- The Maple Leafs will find out what it is like to be without Auston Matthews, as the Calder Trophy winner will miss the first regular season game of his career on Wednesday against the Minnesota Wild with an upper-body injury.
“Sometimes you get bumped or you get hacked or things happen.” Leafs head coach Mike Babcock said of Matthews, whose consecutive game streak ends at 98 games. “We sat out James (van Riemsdyk) and (Matt Martin) earlier (with minor injuries). You’ve got to try to use your head.”
The 20-year-old center left the morning skate early on Monday, but played in a 4-3 shootout victory against the Vegas Golden Knights, registering a gorgeous assist. After the game, Matthews indicated that the injury bothered him for awhile, but was something that he could play through.
“(The discomfort had) been lingering a little bit and then kind of came back in that St. Louis game. It's just a little bit of soreness. It was fine to play tonight.” Matthews said after the win. “I think you never really feel 100 percent. I felt good enough to play and felt good enough to be able to contribute (Monday) night.”
After Matthews skipped practice on Tuesday, the club recalled center Frederik Gauthier from the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League. The 22-year-old participated in an optional skate on Wednesday, but will not see his first NHL action of the season.
Babcock indicated that veteran Patrick Marleau will shift from wing to center in place of Matthews. Toronto must also rely on Tyler Bozak and Nazem Kadri to carry more of the offensive burden.
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Bozak scored two goals in a 6-4 loss to the Blues on Saturday and played better after being relegated to the fourth line during the Leafs recent four-game road trip. Kadri tallied twice against the Golden Knights on Monday.
“One thing we’ve been talking about all year is the depth of the forward group, guys being able to fill any spots and being versatile to play up and down the lineup.” Kadri said. “Obviously Auston is a very important piece of our puzzle and we’d like him to play as many games as possible, but no matter who’s in or out, I think we have guys to fill the void and certain guys are going to have to step up.”
Matthews is listed as day-to-day and his absence could be the Leafs exercising some caution with their best player, as they have a four-day break in the schedule following a home-and-home set with the Boston Bruins this weekend.