Toronto Maple Leafs head coach reacted to veteran center John Tavares’s lower-body injury that is considered week-to-week.
Tavares was injured against the Buffalo Sabres during the Maple Leafs’ 5-4 loss in overtime on Thursday.
There was serious concern that this might be a season-ending injury for the long-time vet, but thankfully, it doesn’t appear to be that serious, as the Maple Leafs announced that Tavares will be out week-to-week instead.
Jim Hiller Reacts to John Tavares’s Injury
Speaking to reporters ahead of the Maple Leafs’ game against the New York Islanders on Saturday, coach Hiller shared his thoughts on the injury to his alternate captain, Tavares.
“John was playing well, too. That’s a tough one for us, just on the heels of Tanny (Chris Tanev), too. Those are two veteran players, and you just gotta find a way,” Hiller said.
According to Hiller, the team will give youngster Easton Cowan more minutes with Tavares out.
“I thought Easton Cowan played extremely well in that last game. I think you know we kind of got on our heels a little bit in that third period (against the Islanders). We didn’t like the result. But Cowboy was the one guy in that third period I thought had a lot of energy, was still hard on the forecheck, so we’ll probably lean on him a little more,” Hiller said.
John Tavares This Year
The 36-year-old Tavares has skated in seven games for the Maple Leafs this season, scoring two goals and seven points for the team, while missing one game for the birth of his son, Tucker Tavares.
Last season, Tavares played in all 82 regular-season games for Toronto, scoring 31 goals and 71 points overall for the team, as he continued to contribute top-level production this late into his NHL career.
Despite being in the latter stages of his hockey playing career, Tavares is still a very valuable contributor to the Maple Leafs, and it’s a shame that he got injured against Buffalo. But hopefully he won’t be out long and can return to the team in just a few weeks, as they need him contributions.
Jim Hiller Reacts to John Tavares Injury for Maple Leafs