Latest Report Raises Serious Questions About Leafs' Management of Auston Matthews' Injury

Heading into training camp, Auston Matthews has revealed a clean bill of health, corroborated by Leafs GM Brad Treliving and head coach Craig Berube in separate media availabilities.

Matthews was injured in training camp last year and played all season with his injury, so it makes sense that Leafs Nation would be skeptical that he's fully healthy until he steps into game action and looks like his old, productive self.

Matthews and the Leafs have put his injury issues behind him, but on Friday in his pre-training camp report, Sportsnet's Luke Fox dropped a bombshell about just how bad the 27-year-old's injury was last season.

The news that Matthews was operating for the majority of the season at significantly less than even 50-percent has raised concerns about the Leafs' treatment plan, and more importantly, why they didn't shut him down sooner, and why they allowed him to play in the 4 Nations Face-Off instead of prioritizing his health ahead of the playoffs.

Everyone understands that players will play as long as they are able to, but sometimes it's to the detriment of both the player and team. There has to be a line drawn -- even for NHL superstars.

Matthews admitted his injury affected 'a lot of things', leading to a down year offensively by his standards, but the hope is that he returns to the 2023-24 version of himself that scored 69 goals, or closer to it.

Fox went on to say that behind closed doors, everyone is expecting a big year from the Leafs' captain, indicating that he is fully healthy.

Should he deal with something similar to last season, however, it is imperative that the Leafs put their foot down and ensure he gets the rest and treatment he needs a lot sooner, so he isn't entering the playoffs at 34 percent health.