Updates on William Nylander, Dakota Joshua lead to new concern in Leafs' locker room

The Leafs confirmed Saturday morning that Dakota Joshua and William Nylander did not participate in the morning skate due to illness. What looked minor at first now feels heavier, because Toronto has already dealt with a short absence from Rielly for similar reasons earlier this week.

The official update on Nylander and Joshua came directly from the team this morning.

Illness spreading through a locker room can snowball quickly during a compressed schedule. Teams travel together, share facilities, and rarely get extended recovery windows. Toronto knows this all too well after watching availability swing daily over the last month.

The timing for a bug working its way through the Leafs' locker room could not be worse. The team has struggled to keep key players healthy this season, with Auston Matthews, Anthony Stolarz, Brandon Carlo and Chris Tanev having battled injuries, thinning a team that has some ground to make up if they want to comfortably qualify for the playoffs without having to fight and claw for a Wild Card spot.

Craig Berube now faces a balancing act. If symptoms spread, Toronto may be forced into emergency recalls or line juggling that disrupts chemistry. Nylander drives controlled entries and zone time at an elite rate, and Joshua is a key penalty killer and a physical presence.

The Leafs have survived injuries and illnesses before, yet this mix of illness and physical wear tests depth, which has already been stretched relatively thin. Whether this stays contained or becomes another stretch of survival hockey may define the next few weeks.

The team has lost 2 of their last 3 games, and Craig Berube has already called out his top line, seeking more point production. If the forward group has to endure absences to key players like Nylander and Joshua, it could exacerbate the problems and put even more pressure on the top line to produce.

Following practice on Saturday, Craig Berube revealed that both Nylander and Joshua are game day decisions and are not a lock to play after missing this morning's game day skate.

Thankfully, the holiday break is just around the corner, so the group will get some rest one way or another. Hopefully they can avoid seeing this bug spread too far in the meantime.