The Toronto Maple Leafs have activated defenseman Brandon Carlo off of injured reserve. In a corresponding move, the club reassigned blueliner Marshall Rifai to their AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies.
Carlo underwent foot surgery on Dec. 3 as part of his recovery from an injury that kept him out of the lineup starting on Nov. 15. The injury has limited the 29-year-old blueliner to just 18 games played this season, and in his absence the Maple Leafs have struggled to keep pace in the Eastern Conference playoff race. The Maple Leafs sit 19-15-7 halfway through the season, good for third-to-last in the Eastern Conference.
While Carlo’s return won’t solve everything for Toronto, his addition to head coach Craig Berube’s lineup should give the team a much-needed boost. Carlo is a veteran of over 650 NHL games and has 85 games of playoff experience. The big right-shot crease-clearer is a well-regarded defensive defenseman, and has been a key penalty killer for the club this season. Carlo is averaging just over 20 minutes of ice time per game, including 2:32 per game on the penalty kill, which leads all Maple Leafs skaters.
Toronto paid a hefty price to acquire Carlo at the trade deadline last season, surrendering Fraser Minten and two draft picks, one of which is the team’s 2026 first-rounder, top-five protected. His presence helped Toronto win their first-round playoff series against the Ottawa Senators last Spring, but his injuries have kept him from making a sizable impact this season. Now healthy, he’ll get the chance to return to the lineup and assist the team in making a push up the Eastern Conference standings.