Leafs Unveil New Line Combinations Following Injury to Auston Matthews

Auston Matthews will be out of action for about a week, according to Leafs' head coach Craig Berube, though the veteran coach remains hopeful that his star center will be back sooner than that.

Without Matthews centering the top line, though, Berube was forced to put his forward lines in a blender at Thursday's morning skate. Replacing Matthews, to no one's surprise, is John Tavares, who was flanked by William Nylander and Matthew Knies.

After spending the past few games on the fourth line, Max Domi was moved onto the second line with the red-hot Nick Robertson and Bobby McMann. Some may not think Domi deserves the promotion, but the line has played well together in the past.

With Domi's promotion, and the absence of Scott Laughton, Steven Lorentz will line up at center on the fourth line with Sammy Blais and Calle Jarnkrok, while the Leafs' new off-season acquisitions, Dakota Joshua, Nicolas Roy and Matias Maccelli will skate together on the third line.

The most surprising detail in the wake of Matthews' health issue is that Easton Cowan was not recalled by the club and inserted into the lineup.

Cowan will likely make a return to the lineup over the weekend, after being held out of the Marlies' lineup on Wednesday.

With the Leafs posting a 10-5 record without Matthews last season, the group has shown that it can get the job done under roster duress. Hopefully, they're up to the task tonight against the Kings, as the Leafs are already riding a 3-game losing streak and desperately need to get back into the win column to help them build some confidence.