Auston Matthews skates during Toronto Maple Leafs training camp at the Ford Performance Centre in September. Photo by Ernest Doroszuk /Toronto Sun
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There was an Auston Matthews sighting on Saturday morning at Scotiabank Arena.
And it was an encouraging one.
The Maple Leafs captain was back on the ice for the first time since last Sunday, when he played more than 22 minutes in an overtime loss in Minnesota, for Toronto’s optional morning skate.
If observers didn’t know any better, they might have thought Matthews was just getting in some reps before facing the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night.
Matthews shot the puck with authority and had no signs of discomfort, but after being placed on injured reserve on Friday as he deals with an upper-body injury, he isn’t eligible to play until Tuesday night at home against the Ottawa Senators at the earliest.
“He’s going in the right direction,” Leafs coach Craig Berube said. “He’s on the ice, which is great news. He’s feeling better, so it’s good.”
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Matthews, who also missed time in training camp with an upper-body issue, took part in drills with defencemen Philippe Myers and Matt Benning, as well as forward Connor Dewar. The latter’s conditioning stint — after he recovered from shoulder surgery — with the Toronto Marlies has come to an end.
The Leafs, naturally, were encouraged by Matthews’ on-ice participation.
“We know ‘Tony’ is a big part of our team, him not being here we just have to stick with each other,” defenceman Simon Benoit said. “We can’t let that affect our game. Some guys have to step up and I think we have been doing that so far.
“We just want him to get better. Hopefully it won’t be long and seeing him on the ice today was good.”
Matthews missed two games this week — a 3-1 win against the Detroit Red Wings on Friday, which followed a 4-0 victory versus the Boston Bruins on Tuesday — before he watched again as the Leafs and Montreal Canadiens clashed on Saturday night.
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The Leafs were 37-19-2 in games Matthews has missed during his National Hockey League career before they met the Canadiens.
Winger Calle Jarnkrok, meanwhile, has been on the ice this week as he works his way back from a lower-body injury, but Berube said there is no timeline for his return. Jarnkrok and defenceman Dakota Mermis (jaw) remain on longterm injured reserve.
Defenceman Jani Hakanpaa (knee) continues his LTIR conditioning loan with the Marlies and was in the lineup in Charlotte on Saturday.
