Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly is expected to return to the lineup on Thursday after missing over five weeks with a knee injury. Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Rasmus Sandin will be back in the lineup when the team hosts the St. Louis Blues at Scotiabank Arena on Tuesday. Sandin injured his neck on Dec. 20 against the Tampa Bay Lightning and explained in an interview with the Sports Illustrated Media Group the at the time of the injury, it caused the 22-year-old to have blurred vision [https://www.si.com/nhl/maple-leafs/news/maple-leafs-rasmus-sandin-explains-neck-injury-that-temporarily-affected-his-vision] before he was pulled out of the contest for precautionary reasons. “You’re just looking for him to get back to playing the way he was,” Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe said of his expectations for Sandin. “He was playing really well and playing lots for us.” As the Maple Leafs sustained injuries to many players on defense like Morgan Rielly (returned in Arizona last week), TJ Brodie (oblique injury, returned Dec. 8) and Jake Muzzin (out indefinitely with a cervical spine issue), Sandin saw his role increase and he averaged well over 20 minutes a game in a top-four role. "He’ll be back alongside friend and fellow Swede Timothy Liljegren. Sandin has two goals and 14 points in 33 games this season. TJ Brodie will move back to the right side and be reunited with Morgan Rielly for the first time since Oct. 29. Rielly and Brodie spent the first nine games of the season skating together as Toronto's top defensive pair [https://www.si.com/nhl/maple-leafs/news/maple-leafs-line-tracker-2022-23-season]. Conor Timmins will come out of the lineup after dressing for the last 11 games and registering eight assists. “He’s played really well,” Keefe said of Timmins. “We’re going to continue to use the time wisely that he’s not playing to continue to work with him to allow him to grow to his potential because I still think he has room to grow there. The Maple Leafs are coming off a December that was filled with a lot of cross-continental travel. The team will play 13 games in January with just four of them occurring on the road and none of them are outside of the eastern time zone. The extra time at home should allow for the players to spend more time with skills and development staff.
