Toronto Maple Leafs: Auston Matthews returns to the ice

All the latest news on Auston Matthews’ injury, as he takes another step towards returning to action for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

As the Toronto Maple Leafs proved — in emphatic style — on Saturday night, they are capable of beating top opposition without Auston Matthews. However, given that this has been their only win in three games without him, they would obviously prefer he was playing.

In this respect, there was some positive news on Monday morning, courtesy of an update from Kristen Shilton of TSN. Shilton tweeted that Matthews was back on the ice, ahead of Leafs practice.

Shilton went on to write that the 21-year-old’s drills involved some shooting. He was accompanied on the ice by player development consultant Darryl Belfry, assistant player development director Hayley Wickenheiser and therapist Jon Geller.

The fact that Matthews was shooting is a step in the right direction. It shows he is making good progress in his recovery from the left shoulder injury he suffered against the Winnipeg Jets, on Oct. 27.

Even though the 2016 first overall draft pick did not require surgery, the initial prognosis was that he would be out for at least four weeks. He expressed his frustration at the time, as reported by the Toronto Sun‘s Terry Koshan:

"“(I) just have to let it heal and do everything I can to stay in shape. It’s not the position you want to be in, but at least you can still skate once it starts to heal a little bit and feel better, get back on the ice and try to stay in game shape.”"

Despite Matthews’ positive progress, it is too early to tell if he will return ahead of schedule. In truth, the Leafs will likely err on the side of caution anyway, just as they did last season.

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When the two-time All-Star injured his right shoulder during the 2017-18 campaign, he was initially expected to be out for around 10 days. In the end, however, he essentially missed a month of action.

Taking a cautious approach is helped by the Leafs having more offensive firepower, compared to last season. Not that Matthews isn’t missed, after a tremendous start this season, which included 16 points (10 goals and six assists) in his first seven games.

Of course, if the team loses more than it wins in the coming games, the pressure will intensify to bring the 2017 Calder Memorial Trophy winner back as soon as possible. Based on the original four-week prognosis, he is currently in line to miss at least nine more games.

Are you encouraged by the update on Matthews, or just taking it with a pinch of salt at this stage? Assuming he does miss another nine games, what is your prediction for the Toronto Maple Leafs’ record during that stretch? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.