With the official news that Toronto Maple Leafs center and captain Auston Matthews will miss the rest of this regular season, he has plenty of time to reflect and contemplate his future with the organization.
Toronto Maple Leafs superstar and captain Auston Matthews will be missing the remainder of this regular season, suffering a Grade 3 MCL tear and a quad contusion from a knee-on-knee collision with Anaheim Ducks defenseman Radko Gudas.
Gudas has since been handed a five-game suspension for his actions, but the aftermath of the situation leaves several questions hanging in the air regarding Matthews' health and future with the Maple Leafs
On Saturday, during Elliotte Friedman’s ‘Saturday Headlines’ segment on Hockey Night in Canada, the NHL insider had plenty to say on Matthews' injury and situation.
He began by discussing the extent of the injury, stating that Matthews and the Maple Leafs won’t know whether he requires surgery for another week or two, but they are hopeful he can make a full recovery without surgery.
He also added that both parties believe that, whether Matthews undergoes surgery or not, he’ll recover over the summer, and the organization is confident that he'll be ready for the start of the 2026-27 season.
However, Friedman revealed a possible fallout due to this situation. While Friedman has previously reported that Matthews has told the Maple Leafs he is committed to the organization on several occasions, he believes the captain's time off can open the door to new conversations.
"What this also allows Matthews to do is start the clock on how he feels about things," started Friedman. “A lot has happened in a very short time in Toronto from the last time they kind of touched base with him at the beginning of February.
"Since he’s not going to play now, he has some time to think about it, they’ll have time to talk to him about it, and I think sometime over the next couple of months, we’re going to get a better idea of how everybody feels about the overall future of Matthews and the Maple Leafs," Sportsnet's insider added.
Next season will be the third year of Matthews' four-year contract. He earns $13.25 million against the salary cap and is eligible to sign an extension as early as July 1, 2027.
Auston Matthews (Bob Frid-Imagn Images)When Gudas hit Matthews, there was little reaction from the Maple Leafs players on the ice. Morgan Rielly and William Nylander - who were on the ice when Matthews went down - mentioned that they did not see what had happened, but were upset with their own lack of response.
In the third period, the Maple Leafs showed some pushback, increasing the physicality, and winning the game, but for many, it felt too late.
The lack of a response from the Maple Leafs players prompted host Ron MacLean to ask Friedman how Matthews feels about the lack of reaction, and if it's "a big thing."
"I think it is," Friedman responded. "He hasn’t said anything yet, so I don’t want to assume. He hasn’t said anything at this point in time, but I think it would be. There’s no question in my mind that eternally, it will have ramifications on the future and the construction of the team."
There is still plenty to unfold from this situation, but the Maple Leafs head into a crucial off-season with several question marks regarding the future of many key figures in the organization.
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