No News Isn't Always Good News: Concerns Rising for Maple Leafs Regarding Injured Forward

It's no secret that the Toronto Maple Leafs are missing forward Scott Laughton, both on the ice and in the locker room.

Laughton went down with an injury towards the end of training camp, which has kept him out ever since. He was given a week-to-week designation st the time, and at the start of October, Leafs GM Brad Treliving had stated that the team would provide an update on Laughton towards the middle of October. That time has come and gone.

Typically, fans expect routine updates on players, but it's been radio silence from the team for a couple of weeks, leaving much room for speculation from Leafs Nation -- especially since the Maple Leafs have said so little.

That lack of communication has some believing the issue could be a worse situation than originally thought.

With Laughton out, Toronto has had to keep shuffling the lineup. Nicolas Roy has taken over as the fourth-line center, while Max Domi has moved to the third line to keeo the depth down the middle intact.

The Leafs are eagerly awaiting Laughton's return, not only for his defensive reliability and penalty-killing ability, but also for his physical edge and drive that made him a key target at last year's deadline.

Once healthy, Laughton's return could allow the Leafs to shift Domi back to the wing and restore balance throughout the bottom six, something this team sorely needs right now.

The hope is that the Leafs will provide an update on Laughton this coming week, but if we don't receive one, the speculation that the injury might be worse than originally reported may begin to escalate.