Ekman-Larsson out vs. Habs; McCabe expected back before end of season
The Toronto Maple Leafs will be down to five healthy defensemen when they take on the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday.
Rearguard Oliver Ekman-Larsson is set to miss the contest and is listed as day-to-day with an undisclosed injury, head coach Craig Berube announced Friday, according to TSN's Chris Johnston.
The Maple Leafs don't have the cap room to call up another player.
"Maybe I'll suit up and play back there, I wasn't sure about it," Berube joked.
The bench boss added, "It's always challenging, but we've played games where we've lost a D early in the game and you play with five. I mean, it's important that our forwards do a good job of helping our D out tomorrow night and making sure that they get back quick for breakouts and things like that. Make the game easy on them as much as possible."
Berube also provided an update on Jake McCabe. The blue-liner has been ruled out for Saturday, but he's expected to return before the end of the regular season, according to TSN's Mark Masters. The Maple Leafs will have two games remaining on their schedule after the weekend.
McCabe has missed the last three outings due to an undisclosed injury. He leads the team in average ice time (21:31) this season while chipping in with 23 points in 66 outings.
The 31-year-old sat out five games earlier this campaign after taking a puck to the face and four additional contests after getting injured in a fight.
Ekman-Larsson, meanwhile, recorded one shot on goal in 25:14 minutes of ice time during Toronto's 4-3 overtime victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday. He's racked up 29 points in 77 contests this campaign.
The puck drops on the Leafs' clash with the Canadiens at 7 p.m. ET.