With the Toronto Maple Leafs already ruling their captain out for the remainder of the season, the focus shifts entirely to Auston Matthews’ recovery and the strong likelihood of surgery following a Grade 3 MCL tear.
The Toronto Maple Leafs announced on Thursday that Auston Matthews had surgery in New York City to repair a Grade 3 tear of his MCL and that his recovery time has been set for approximately 12 weeks.
Earlier in the day, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported in his latest 32 Thoughts column that there was a growing belief that surgery would be a necessary component of the captain’s recovery process.
"We’ll see when it happens, but it sounds like surgery will be part of Auston Matthews’ recovery," Friedman noted, while adding that there remains "plenty of confidence" that Matthews will be ready for the puck drop of the 2026-27 season in October.
The injury occurred during a physical March 12 contest against the Anaheim Ducks. Matthews was leveled by a heavy hit from Ducks captain Radko Gudas, resulting in both a Grade 3 MCL tear and a severe quad contusion. The fallout from the hit has sparked a firestorm of debate in Toronto. Much of the discourse has centered on the perceived lack of an immediate physical response from Matthews’ teammates on the ice, a recurring theme during difficult stretches of the Leafs’ season. Furthermore, the NHL Department of Player Safety’s decision to hand Gudas a five-game suspension has been met with criticism, with many arguing the punishment didn’t fit the loss of Matthews’ magnitude.
Speaking after the Leafs took part in their inaugural ‘Fan Day’ event at Scotiabank Arena on Thursday, Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube said they should “know something soon” on what the next step for Matthews will be. That was confirmed with the release on the Leafs' social channels.
“I saw him last game in the morning here and stuff, he seemed okay,” Berube said. “Obviously it's a tough situation for him.”
With the Maple Leafs currently sitting on the outside of the playoff picture and their post-season aspirations “all but dead,” the organization has the luxury, if you can call it that, of patience. The Leafs immediately shut down their start for the remainder of the 2025-26 NHL season upon disclosure of the severity of the injury.
Now that Matthews and the Leafs chose the surgical route, the recovery and strengthening process can begin.
Matthews finishes his first year as captain with 27 goals and 26 assists in 60 games. In a reflection of the team’s overall struggles this year, Matthews also finished as a “minus” player (minus-4) for the first time since his third season in the league. While the numbers are respectable for most, they represent a frustrated season for a player of Matthews’ caliber, a season that now officially ends with the likelihood of being on an operating table rather than in the playoffs.