Flyers GM Daniel Briere makes his feelings known about Jake McCabe's scary head injury after fight with Garnet Hathaway

Philadelphia Flyers general manager Daniel Briere spoke about Jake McCabe’s injury after his fight with Garnet Hathaway. The injury happened during the Flyers’ 3-2 overtime loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena on Sunday. The defenseman, who suffered an upper-body injury, has been placed on injured reserve.

McCabe will miss at least three games, and the Maple Leafs have called up Marshall Rifai as a replacement. He has been a key player for Toronto, contributing 11 points and playing solid defense this season.

During a telephonic interview on TSN's "OverDrive," Briere started by expressing concern for Jake McCabe’s health. He stressed that injuries are not something anyone wants to see, but defended Hathaway’s aggressive style.

"First of all, we hope that McCabe is OK." Briere said [36:35]. "That's the, you know, the most important part. I don't think anybody wishes anybody to get hurt. But it's the type for Garnet. He has to play that way to be effective. He has to be a guy that finishes this check and plays hard. He's always done that."

Hathaway, known for his physical play, has always been a hard-hitting presence on the ice. Briere explained that players like Hathaway are important for team morale.

"I know I hated seeing him come in and bang your defenseman around when he was in Washington and Boston,” Briere said. "So we love having him on our team. He's a tough customer. Every team has those guys, and they bring something that is tough to find, you and he makes our younger guys feel a little bit more safe out on the ice."

However, he acknowledged the risks involved in playing such a physical style.

"We really appreciate how he plays, but obviously he has to play," Briere said. "It's a fine line, and you know a few times these cross the line. Over the years, he's well aware that he has to be careful at how far he pushes it."

The Maple Leafs will now have to adjust their defense without McCabe.

Maple Leafs win 3-2 against Flyers despite Jake McCabe's injury

The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2 in overtime on Sunday. Morgan Rielly scored the winning goal at 2:25 of overtime, ending a seven-game point drought. Auston Matthews had two assists, and Dennis Hildeby made 30 saves for Toronto.

Jake McCabe left the game late in the first period, and coach Craig Berube said McCabe was supporting a teammate.

“We’ll see tomorrow how he is,” Berube said, per NHL. “I can’t give you any really news on it. What did I think of it? Well I didn’t like it. I didn’t like what I saw, I’ll tell you that. He’s sticking up for his teammate, and we all really appreciate that, but I did not like seeing that happen.”

Matthew Knies and Oliver Ekman-Larsson also scored for the Maple Leafs. Despite missing Jake McCabe, Toronto played strong defense and earned its fourth straight win. The two teams will meet again on Tuesday.