BOSTON – Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews has not been ruled out of tonight’s Game 7 against the Boston Bruins.
But head coach Sheldon Keefe suggested after the morning skate that his best player would not return for Toronto’s season.
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Matthews has not played since Game 4 of the first-round series when doctors removed him from action during the second intermission due to illness.
The ailing sniper took part in the Leafs’ full morning skate at TD Garden – his longest appearance on the ice with the team since being taken out of the lineup on April 24.
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Keefe said the Leafs are “moving forward” as they are with the forward group, indicating Matthews is likely to sit out his third consecutive elimination contest.
Toronto trailed 3-1 in the series before rallying for a 2-1 overtime win at Boston in Game 5 and a 2-1 home win on Thursday, forcing tonight’s winner-takes-all final.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 4, 2024.
© 2024 The Canadian Press