Maple Leafs Taking Cautious, Preventative Approach With Defenseman Chris Tanev, Won't Play Against Devils Due To 'Planned Maintenance'

The Toronto Maple Leafs are gearing up for the second half of a back-to-back against the New Jersey Devils on Sunday night.

With that, head coach Jim Hiller is making multiple changes to the lineup after their 4-2 loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday.

A big development regarding the Leafs' roster for Sunday's outing is that 36-year-old Chris Tanev will be pulled from the lineup, but not because of an injury. The team calls Tanev's absence for this game "planned maintenance."

The plan to rest the veteran blueliner is related to the wear and tear he's gone through over the years, especially these past two years with the Maple Leafs. This is part of the path the team's staff has for him, managing his recovery from the injury he suffered earlier this season.

Hiller was asked if it should be expected for Tanev to rest in back-to-back situations.

"I mean, I can't speak for the whole season, but, yeah, I think so," Hiller said before Sunday's game. "You know, that's where we're trying to manage them a little bit, and the guy wants to play every single game every night. But I think that will probably be part of the plan."

Tanev missed nine games this season, dealing with an upper-body injury, as the team labelled it. That injury occurred against the Colorado Avalanche, where he played 3:29 of ice time before being forced out of the game.

He then returned to the lineup against the Vancouver Canucks on Oct. 31. Since that return, the D-man has played two more games, including the Utah Mammoth on Tuesday and the Canadiens on Saturday.

On Saturday, Tanev played 18:23 of ice time, taking 27 shifts in the loss. Despite taking the second-most shifts among Toronto's defensemen, only Troy Stecher finished the game with less ice time.

Last season, he played just 11 games all year long because of multiple health issues, including core muscle surgery and spine trauma. 

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