Auston Matthews Absent From Maple Leafs Practice Ahead of Game 5

After a disappointing OT loss in a Game 4 that could have resulted in a sweep for the Leafs over the Senators, we are officially headed back to Toronto for another elimination game.

Unfortunately, after playing 26:23 in Game 4, Auston Matthews was not on the ice on Monday for the Leafs, which has fans feeling uneasy. The team has already confirmed that Matthews' absence is rest-related, but his ongoing health issues this season do leave room for some concern.

Matthews has been dealing with an upper-body injury this season, which necessitated a trip to Germany for the Leafs captain to receive treatment. Recently, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman even revealed the nature of Matthews' injury, which sent him overseas for the treatment.

Despite having played through the issue for much of the season and the playoffs, Matthews has still managed to he quite productive, producing 1 goal and 5 points across 4 games this post-season. He has also played exceedingly well on the defensive side of the puck.

At this point, Matthews' absence from practice is not expected to prevent him from suiting up for Game 5, but if he continues to take additional rest on practice days throughout the course of the playoff run, it won't do much to dissuade anyone from being concerned.