The Toronto Maple Leafs will be missing one of their newest additions for the next little while. Max Pacioretty suffered a lower-body injury in Toronto’s last game against the Columbus Blue Jackets where they lost 6-2. Pacioretty’s injury is classified as day-to-day per Maple Leafs head coach.
Pacioretty Out With Injury
Pacioretty was ruled out to return to action in the third period against the Blue Jackets. During the game, there was no obvious moment where it was visible to see Pacioretty in pain or discomfort. Nonetheless, he left the game and never returned in the final frame of the game. The veteran forward was beginning to find his spot in the lineup as a third-line winger. Actually, he picked up his second goal of the season on Monday against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Therefore, picking up another injury is a real shame for the 35-year-old.
The former Montreal Canadiens captain has had a career littered with injuries. In the past four seasons before this one, Pacioretty suffered 12 injuries. That includes three Achilles injuries, as well as other lower-body issues and undisclosed injuries. Because of this, he missed a vast amount of games for the Vegas Golden Knights, Carolina Hurricanes and the Washington Capitals. In addition to that, he will now miss games with the Toronto Maple Leafs. If it weren’t for all these injuries, he would’ve reached 1,000 NHL games by this stage of his career. He currently sits at 907 games played.
Opportunities Presenting Themselves
Although Pacioretty is a solid player, the Leafs have a great deal of depth to replace him. David Kampf was a healthy scratch against Columbus, chances are he’ll be back to being in the lineup regularly. On top of that, the Leafs have a few players coming back from injuries. Connor Dewar and Calle Jarnkrok are both on Toronto’s injury-reserve list. Dewar has been practicing gradually but has not returned to the lineup. This could be his chance to potentially return to action and feature on the fourth line.
Main Photo Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
