Matthews Injury 4Nations The Toronto Maple Leafs announced they have recalled defenseman Marshall Rifai and placed captain Auston Matthews on injured reserve retroactive to Dec. 20. Rifai has two goals and four points in 22 games for the Marlies this season, he played in two games for the Maple Leaf last season and averaged 11:40 of ice time. As TSN's Chris Johnston pointed out [https://x.com/reporterchris/status/1874121756312821804], Matthews can be activated at anytime and this move is likely to add another body. With Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Pontus Holmberg missing today's Maple leafs game against the New York Islanders due to illness Philippe Myers will step into the sixth defense slot. The Leafs head to Long Island for a rematch on Thursday, the Marlies play a New Years Day game against the Syracuse Crunch before a back-to-back against the Cleveland Monsters on Saturday and Sunday. The Hockey News Toronto dove deeper into these moves here [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/toronto-maple-leafs/latest-news/why-the-maple-leafs-placed-auston-matthews-on-injured-reserve-and-called-up-marshall-rifai-from-marlies]. Make sure you bookmark The Hockey News' AHL Page [https://thehockeynews.com/ahl/] for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns and so much more.
