The Toronto Maple Leafs have shut down Matt Hunwick for the rest of the regular season with an injury that will require surgery. The team announced that Hunwick will have sports hernia surgery for an injury that has been bothering him "for about four weeks."
Hunwick has had a solid season for the Maple Leafs, but now he will be out for the final stretch of games after undergoing surgery. The surgery has a recovery time between 8-10 weeks. Coach Mike Babcock said that Viktor Loov was recalled from the AHL to take Hunwick's spot in the lineup.
"He plays important minutes for us," Babcock said. "But someone else gets a real good opportunity."
Hunwick gave the Maple Leafs strong depth at the position through this season, and while he doesn't come through on the scoring sheet, he plays a key role for the team. Hunwick had 10 points this season in 60 games and was also an alternate captain. Hunwick originally suffered the injury back in February against the Vancouver Canucks, but had been able to play through the pain.
"I actually felt pretty good in my first game back against Montreal and then kind of had some issues the last few games,' Hunwick said.
Hunwick is not the first player to get shut down by the Leafs towards the end of the season. Players like James van Riemsdyk, Joffrey Lupul, Tyler Bozak and Nathan Horton are all out for the remainder of the season. The Maple Leafs are in a heavy rebuild heading into the offseason and the team does not want to risk further injury to certain players.
The team also felt it would be unwise to rush players back from injury, including van Riemsdyk and Lupul. Lupul only played in 46 games this season after suffering a "middle-body injury," while van Riemsdyk had been out since January and was shut down last month.
The Maple Leafs are in the running for the top overall pick in the 2016 NHL draft this season. The team is 21-33-11 on the season with just 53 points. The Leafs have a stockpile of draft picks for the upcoming draft and depending on how the season plays out, they could have 12 selections for 2016.
