Auston Matthews' and Matthew Knies' Game Status vs. The Tampa Bay Lightning is Confirmed

The Maple Leafs took practice on Friday after a rough loss at the hands of the Florida Panthers, and look to get back on track against Tampa Bay. They could be getting some key reinforcements returning as Matthew Knies and Auston Matthews have the potential to return.

Well it looks like Toronto will get two key reinforcements back as TSN's Mark Masters reports that both Auston Matthews and Matthew Knies are practicing and gearing up for game time on Saturday.

The Leafs should be able to given their star power, and they have already had one blemish; a 3-0 loss to the Senators while Matthews was absent, and Toronto responded with 4 straight wins, so there's a high possibility the team comes out swinging.

Toronto dominated Tampa Bay last time round, and with extra motivation not only coming off a loss, but from having two key players back including their beloved team captain.

Matthews will look to shake off his slow start to the year, as he only had 5 goals and 11 points before landing on the IR due to an upper-body injury. The Maple Leafs captain traveled to Germany recently and feels like his injury woes are behind him. Matthews missed 9 games due to injury.

David Alter of The Hockey News also posted a few shots of both men on the ice as well on his X account:

Matthews was seen centering William Nylander as well as the returning Knies at practice, as Toronto continues to keep Marner and Matthews separate as of now.

One Maple Leaf who may not play Saturday is Bobby McMann, who ended up not skating in practice as per Mark Masters of TSN as well.

Knies is returning after taking a nasty hit from the Golden Knights' Zach Whitecloud, and Toronto will be more than happy to get their blossoming power forward back. Knies has been fantastic this year with 8 goals already and on pace to smash last year's total of 15.

Knies has missed the last two games with an upper-body injury as well, as Toronto continues to deal with injuries to several other key players like Max Domi and David Kampf.

Toronto will have Anthony Stolarz as the presumed starter as well as they head into Tampa Bay for the second leg of their Florida road trip. Stolarz is 7-4-2 with a 2.33 GAA and .921 SV%

In closing, it looks like Toronto gets some key reinforcements back just in time for Saturday's crucial game against Tampa Bay where they look to keep their spot at the top of the Atlantic Division.