Dakota Joshua remains in Detroit, won't travel with Maple Leafs after serious injury

Toronto Maple Leafs forward Dakota Joshua left Sunday's game against Detroit after getting hit into the boards. What seemed innocuous at first must have been pretty serious considering that he was out the remainder of the game.

He was ruled out of Tuesday's game against New Jersey and it was curious as to what's keeping the power forward off the ice.

Well, according to Craig Berube it's definitely more serious than at first glance, as apparently Joshua suffered an injury to his kidney, with there being blood as well after tests:

That's a scary injury to say the least, and first and foremost we wish all the best to Joshua on his recovery. It's a really tough break for Joshua who is now dealing with his second serious health scare in as many years.

He underwent treatment for testicular cancer last year and missed half the season before returning, and now with a new lease on his career in Toronto, this latest injury is a huge setback.

Right now all we can determine is that this is not going to be a short-term injury and that Joshua will need to undergo a lot more evaluation before he's even remotely cleared.

We don't know the extent of the injury either, whether it was simply a rough shot to the kidney a la an MMA fighter would receive from a kidney shot, or if it's something more serious like a laceration which would require a lot more recovery and attention.

It's unfortunate as Joshua was really coming into his own with the Maple Leafs. In 36 games, he's posted 10 points (6 goals, 4 assists) with 127 hits and 26 blocks in only 12:19 TOI. He was on pace to break both his goal and assist marks from last season, and who knows if he'll be the same when he comes back.

For now, the Maple Leafs are going to have to rely on names like Jacob Quillan and Calle Jarnkrok to take Joshua's place, and all we can hope for is that he is able to make his return eventually down the line.