The Toronto Maple Leafs have been battling through injuries to begin the 2026-27 regular season, and they have finally found the boost they have needed.
Dakota Joshua made his season debut for the Maple Leafs during their 4-2 victory on Saturday night against the Vancouver Canucks. Joshua’s return to Toronto’s lineup carried the weight of a long recovery that led back to his season-ending injury at the end of the 2025-26 season. Leading up to his first game of the season, Joshua took part in the Maple Leafs’ training camp with the AHL squad, the Toronto Marlies, as he wasn’t ready for NHL action yet.
Dakota Joshua Returns to Maple Leafs Lineup
Joshua’s return on Saturday was everything Maple Leafs fans have hoped for when they acquired the 30-year-old winger from the Vancouver Canucks one summer ago. He was limited to 11 minutes of ice time, but was effective when given an opportunity. The Michigan native registered a game-high seven hits and five shots on net. His play gave the Maple Leafs the spark they needed to end a lengthy road trip.
His return to NHL action was longer and more uncertain than originally expected. Joshua has been dealing with a core injury that airised back in April to end his season that lingered into the offseason and into training camp. The injury did not demand surgery at any point throughout this timeline, but required a lot of hard rehab to get his body back into shape. Like another injury, there was a lot of progression, but also a lot of setbacks that kept Joshua out for so long.
“I knew it was bad,” Joshua said Monday after practice, reflecting on the injury. “I did not know that it was going to take so long to recover from. And just being that area, like, I went to non-surgery also. It was just a lot of rehab. And then some days I did feel like I was back. And then it was kind of just ups and downs, ups and downs until, like, I thought I was going to go through camp and then getting out there and getting at that pace and speed, realizing that I wasn’t there yet.”
Joshua Gets Chance in Maple Leafs Top-Six
Joshua was slotted on the Maple Leafs’ second line during practice on Monday alongside William Nylander and Nick Paul. With lots of injuries to Toronto’s top six, Joshua’s play on Saturday night earned him the opportunity to play with the Maple Leafs stars. Saturday we saw Joshua on the team’s third line, which Jim Hiller expressed worked well together.
“You just gotta rely on the work that you put in, and the real test is going out there and doing it,” Joshua said. “And now it’s just trying to follow it up and just build off of that, and hopefully your legs and the body come along as it goes, and you get more into the season type of grind. That’s why you put in all the work to get back, so that when you are, you know, you can hold up and get that stability up.”
Maple Leafs Get Major Boost as Returning Forward Moves Into Top Six