Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews returned to the ice on Saturday after almost a two-week absence. Matthews has been out since Nov. 3 due to an upper-body injury. He was last seen skating briefly on Nov. 9 before the Leafs' morning skate against the Montreal Canadiens.
"Auston Matthews on the ice First time we’ve seen him skating since Nov. 10," Mark Masters tweeted.
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Matthews traveled to Munich, Germany, on Tuesday with the Leafs physician, Noah Forman, to see a doctor he has worked with before. The team's general manager, Brad Treliving, mentioned that Matthews' injury was not serious but had been bothering him for a while.
"We haven't been trying to be cryptic with all this stuff." Treliving said on Tuesday, per The Hockey News. "We've been calling him day-to day-because that's what he's been. We've looked at the schedule here and what we're trying to do is use this week to hopefully get this thing behind him. ...
"We're hopeful that once we get through the week here, he'll be back up and skating and his return to play would be after that."
During Matthews' absence, the Leafs have played well, winning six out of seven games. Matthews has recorded five goals and 11 points in 13 games this season.
Auston Matthews' return date is still unclear. He may be ready to play by Wednesday when the Leafs face the Florida Panthers.
Vegas Golden Knights forward Jack Eichel on Auston Matthews' traveling to Germany
Vegas Golden Knights forward Jack Eichel praised Auston Matthews for traveling to Germany to treat his upper-body injury.
"I think teams are communicating well with players and giving them the chance to see the people they want to see and I think that's been a big part of it as well," Eichel told reporters on Wednesday. "I think it goes both ways. It's good that he's been able to get the treatment that he needs, or wants. Hopefully, he can get healthy."
Eichel also shared his experience, mentioning how the Vegas organization supported him during his neck surgery.
