Craig Berube explains why Auston Matthews cut practice short: Upper-body ailment

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Tom Banks
September 24, 2024 (1:21 PM)

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The Toronto Maple Leafs saw captain Auston Matthews leave practice early on Tuesday, but now Craig Berube has seemingly alleviated all concerns.

2024/25 is another season full of Stanley Cup hopes and dreams for the Toronto Maple Leafs, and after bringing in Craig Berube and naming Auston Matthews captain , the confidence is high within the organization. That confidence was tested on Tuesday however, as Matthews was seen leaving practice early, a worrying sign for the fans and the team.

However, the team were quick to respond, with Craig Berube revealing just hours later that it was an upper-body ailment, with the veteran coach describing the situation as "nothing serious".

This should allow Maple Leafs fans to breathe a massive sigh of relief, as losing Matthews for an extended period of time could completely derail their upcoming season, especially given the production he's had offensively in the past few seasons.

In just 562 National Hockey League games with the Maple Leafs, Matthews has tallied an incredible 368 goals, putting him on pace to become one of the greatest goal scorers that the league has ever seen. Now, he's got the added responsibility of being the captain, and with such high hopes for the upcoming season, No. 34 is the one player that this team can't afford to lose if they want to end an almost 60 year Stanley Cup drought.

Two seasons ago, Matthews tallied 40 goals, and that drop off in production was due to a major wrist injury that held him back all season, so he has dealt with injury concerns over the years, but for the most part, Matthews has been very available throughout his NHL career. With the regular season just over two weeks away, the team will now need to be careful with his activities heading into the season, and if he's still 100% healthy, there's no reason to expect anything but another stellar campaign from him.