It is very rare for the Toronto Maple Leafs to receive any good news regarding injuries recently, and their lack of specificity has contributed to fan angst. The club described goalie Anthony Stolarz’s upper body injury as day-to-day, and it has been three weeks since the injury-plagued netminder has been seen on the ice, with only head coach Craig Berube saying that there has not been any improvement.
The latest case of bad news comes regarding defenseman Brandon Carlo, who travelled with the club and had been on the ice in recent days with the hope of returning in the near future, but the narrative regarding the righty blueliner changed on Tuesday in Sunrise, FL, where the Leafs take on the Florida Panthers in the fifth game of their six-game road swing.
Carlo, who has been out since November 13th, reportedly had a setback in his recovery from a lower-body injury and returned to Toronto. Berube spoke to the media on Tuesday and indicated in his usual evasive manner that the defenseman is likely headed for a surgical procedure.
“It’s going to be an extended time. He has to get something done, so it didn’t go the way we thought, so he’s going to be out for a bit.” Berube said.
Based on the lack of specifics as to what the nature of the injury is, there is no way to know how long Carlo will be out, but his absence along with veteran Chris Tanev to concussion issues has severely debilitated the Leafs defensive corps, forcing veteran Oliver Ekman-Larsson to play higher in the lineup, Jake McCabe to play on his off-side, Simon Benoit to play in the top four, and the likes of Dakota Mermis, or Philippe Myers to play regularly.
The waiver claim of veteran Troy Stecher has paid off for Toronto, as the righty has been steady in a support role, but the loss of Carlo, in spite of posting only two assists in 18 games, is significant. Tanev continues to skate back in Toronto, but it is unknown when he will be back. The Leafs blueline is weaker than it has been in years, and there does not seem to be any appetite from management or Berube to give youngsters like William Villeneuve or former NHLer Henry Thrun a look, so at this point it appears that the Leafs will ride or die with what they have on their roster.
The Leafs are once again in last place in the tightly compacted Eastern Conference after Buffalo’s 5-1 win over Winnipeg, but could move to within two points of third-place Montreal with a victory. Joseph Woll will get the start against the Panthers, who will start Sergei Bobrovsky (10-7-0, 2.87 GAA, .882 save %)
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MAPLE LEAFS HISTORY vs. FLORIDA PANTHERS
| All-Time Record: | 51-40-7-8 (106 Games) |
| All-Time Road Record: | 21-23-5-6 (55 Games) |
| 2024-25: | 1-3-0 |
| Last Five: | 1-4-0 |
| Last 10: | 4-5-1 |
| First Matchup Between Clubs: | October 21, 1993 (Toronto 4 at Florida 3 – OTW) |
| All-Time Record: | 51-40-7-8 (106 Games) |
| All-Time Home Record: | 30-17-2-2 (51 Games) |
| All-Time Road Record: | 21-23-5-6 (55 Games) |
| Last Road Win vs. Opponent: | April 10, 2023 (Toronto 2 at Florida 1 – OTW) |
MAPLE LEAFS / PANTHERS – 2025-26 TEAM STATS
| TORONTO | FLORIDA | |
| Goals For Per Game: | 3.40 (5th-T) | 3.08 (13th) |
| Goals Against Per Game: | 3.56 (29th) | 3.17 (19th) |
| Power Play %: | 15.9 (26th) | 19.3 (15th-T) |
| Penalty Kill %: | 80.8 (15th-T) | 78.5 (24th) |
| Shots For Per Game: | 27.2 (18th) | 29.1 (11th) |
| Shots Against Per Game: | 31.4 (31st) | 26.0 (6th-T) |
| Faceoff %: | 56.5 (2nd) | 48.0 (21st-T) |
| (NHL rank in parenthesis) | ||
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Tagged: Brandon Carlo, nhl, Toronto Maple Leafs