The Toronto Maple Leafs could be without a top-line winger in their must-win matchup against the Florida Panthers on Sunday. Matthew Knies has been dubbed as questionable with an undisclosed injury, per Chris Johnston of The Athletic, after playing just 13 minutes in Friday night’s win. Knies didn’t play in the final seven minutes of Game 6, and seemed to be nursing his shoulder through his final few shifts.
Losing Knies would be a major blow at the worst of times for the Maple Leafs. The 22-year-old winger has locked in a role on Toronto’s top-line and top powerplay unit over the year’s second half. He’s tied for second on the team with five goals and ranks third among Leafs forwards in average ice time in 12 games this postseason. The performance has come on the heels of a breakout year during the regular season. Knies scored 58 points, split evenly, in 78 games this season, while converting on a monstrous 19.1 percent of his shots. He also ranked second among Toronto forwards with 182 hits. The performance was a major stride forward from the 15 goals and 35 points he managed last year, and earned Knies as much as 24 minutes of ice time through points in the year.
Filling Knies’ shoes would have to be a group effort for Toronto. His absence would likely push Nicholas Robertson back into the team’s bottom-six, after he served as a healthy scratch for Game 6 – despite scoring the Leafs’ sole goal in Game 5. It’d also push Max Pacioretty further up the lineup and into upgraded powerplay role, rewarding his eight points in 10 postseason appearances so far. But in a must-win game, boosting two slight-frame wingers likely wouldn’t make up for Knies’ imposing physical presence. That could spark more ice time for a bruiser like Steven Lorentz, or push Toronto to lean heavier on the hard-nosed play of a star like William Nylander. The shift in strategy and approach that’d come with those moves will make Knies’ match readiness one of the league’s top storylines as Monday’s decisive matchup looms.