TORONTO -- Auston Matthews participated in his first full practice with the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday and could return from an upper-body injury when they visit the Florida Panthers on Wednesday (7:30 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, SNW, SNO, SN1).
The center and Toronto captain has missed eight games since last playing Nov. 3. Matthews has been skating on his own since returning to North America on Friday following a five-day trip to Germany to visit a doctor, who both he and other Maple Leafs players have seen in the past, for further consultation.
“I felt pretty good, so we will just take it step by step,” Matthews said Tuesday. “I don’t know, we’ll see. I’ll get with the training staff and chat some more. The individual skates are much different than a team practice, so this being the first actual team practice I skated in, I felt really good.
“But I might need maybe one or two [practices] to really get my legs and lungs back under me, but we will just kind of see how I respond today and see how it goes tomorrow.”
Toronto coach Craig Berube said he is not putting any pressure on Matthews to return.
“When a player comes to me and says he’s ready to go, then he’s ready to go,” Berube said.
Neither Matthews nor Berube have offered any further specifics as to the nature of the injury, though the coach has indicated it’s not related to a wrist injury Matthews previously had surgery on during the 2021 offseason.
Matthews, who has 11 points (five goals, six assists) in 13 games this season, centered a line with left wing Pontus Holmberg and right wing William Nylander at practice Tuesday.
“I thought it was great,” Matthews said. “I thought we were moving the puck really well, keeping it simple for the most part. They’re both really good players, and I just might have to learn some Swedish to communicate better with them.
“I thought today we gelled really well in practice. They’re great players, easy to play with.”
Berube said, “Yeah, it was good having him out there. He looked really good and got through practice no problem. A lot of good signs pointing in the right direction.”
Following the game against the Panthers, Toronto will not play again until it visits the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday, which could afford Matthews the chance to get at least another full practice before returning to game action.
“It’s a little bit of everything -- conditioning, timing, obviously getting back in that competitive atmosphere where everything is super reactive -- and I think that’s important to get as much repetition in those settings as possible to feel as game ready as you can,” Matthews said.
Berube hinted an additional practice prior to a return could be in Matthews’ best interest.
“The tricky part is practice, right?” Berube said. “The first day he looked fine and felt fine, but not having a lot of practice time, it’s a little concerning.”
Toronto is 7-1-0 in the eight games without Matthews and is three points ahead of Florida for first place in the Atlantic Division. The Maple Leafs are 42-20-2 all-time without Matthews since he entered the League in 2016-17.
“I don’t think it’s ever easy, but when you continue to bank wins and progress as a team, that’s the sign of a great team, and it definitely gives you a lot of encouragement to see that,” Matthews said.
“It [stinks] watching. I want to be out there as soon as possible, but to see guys step and other players step in and make an impact, that’s a great sign for us.”
