Insider Reveals Major Health Update On Auston Matthews

The Maple Leafs are gearing up for their second half of the season and got off on the right foot to start, winning 5-2 against Detroit on Friday
in Todd McLellan's debut after being hired to take over for Derek Lalonde.

Backed by a hat-trick by Mitch Marner, Toronto looked rejuvenated after Christmas, and showed they can do just fine without Matthews. Speaking of the captain, NHL Insider Nick Kypreos has provided an update regarding his injury and offered a huge piece of optimism towards his eventual return.

As great as it is that Matthews is not suffering from any structural damage where he was injured (presumably his hip), it still doesn't help the fact that Matthews came into the season not at 100% and should have been out earlier to recover.

Granted he missed basically the entirety of November but even when he returned was not the same player who dominated the NHL last season. Clearly he wasn't over his issues, and a crosscheck during a scrum against Buffalo led him to re-aggravate himself.

But as much as the team would like him back, it's ridiculous to try and push him to make a return when they don't need him to; some are even thinking Matthews needs to sit out the next dozen or so games in order to get back into competitive shape in time for the most crucial part of the season; the playoffs.

While his 11 goals and 12 assists are still respectable numbers, they are nowhere near the production fans and teammates come to expect of Matthews and it's really irresponsible of the Leafs to rush him back for the sake of trying to keep the status quo.

No structural damage is a massive positive when it comes to Matthews' injury, and it's more than likely with enough proper recovery time and attention he can get things fixed; but they need to figure out a game plan soon.

If Auston Matthews is able to return healthy and showcase his previous form to solidify Toronto's place atop the Atlantic Division, then all of the questions surrounding his injury will be put to rest.

The main thing first is he needs to get completely healthy, or Toronto's playoff hopes may go up in smoke.