Maple Leafs' Auston Matthews to Miss at Least 3 Weeks with Knee Injury

Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews will miss a minimum of three weeks after suffering a knee sprain during Wednesday's 3-2 overtime win against the New York Rangers, the team announced Friday.

Correspondingly, the NHL announced Matthews will be replaced in next week's NHL All-Star Game by Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov.

While Matthews missed time at the start of last season because of wrist surgery, he has otherwise been fairly durable, appearing in 454 games since his debut in 2016.

When healthy, the 25-year-old is one of the Maple Leafs' most important playmakers, having won the 2021-22 Hart Memorial Trophy as the MVP and the Maurice Richard Trophy as the league's top goal scorer twice.

Matthews finished last season with 106 points on 60 goals and 46 assists and has followed up with 25 goals and 53 points to date this season.

If there's a silver lining for the Maple Leafs, it's that Matthews will have the luxury of using next week's All-Star break to rest up before the Maple Leafs renew their push toward the playoffs in mid-February.

Toronto occupies second place in the Atlantic Division with 68 points, 12 points behind the Boston Bruins.