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The Maple Leafs expect that captain Auston Matthews will re-join the team on Wednesday in Tampa.
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Whether Matthews plays that night against the Lightning as the Leafs return to action following the break for the Winter Olympics is not yet clear.
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The original plan had been that Matthews, following the conclusion of the Olympics, would meet the team in Tampa on Tuesday.
Once the United States won the men’s hockey gold on Sunday in Milan, beating Canada 2-1 in overtime, initial plans went out the window.
With U.S. President Donald Trump inviting Team USA to the State of the Union address on Tuesday night in Washington, the return of Matthews, the captain of the American side, to the Leafs will be delayed.
The U.S. women’s hockey team, which also beat Canada in overtime to win gold, has declined an invitation to the State of the Union address.
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‘Lots of moving parts’
Because of a major snowstorm in the New York City area, the American team flew to Miami from Italy on Monday.
“I think there’s a lot of moving parts as far as our travels back home, but we’ll see what happens,” Matthews said at the podium after the game on Sunday.
The Leafs had Monday off and are scheduled to practise on Tuesday at the Ford Performance Centre before flying to Tampa in the afternoon. An update on Matthews’ status should come from coach Craig Berube before the team travels.
Given their spot in the Eastern Conference standings — six points out of the final wildcard spot and nine points back of third place in the Atlantic Division — the Leafs can’t afford not to have Matthews in the lineup.
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Presumably, Matthews would play on Thursday in Florida against the Panthers if he’s not available on Wednesday night.
William Nylander is slated to practise with the Leafs on Tuesday, which would be the star winger’s first on-ice workout with his teammates after Sweden was eliminated from the Olympics last week.
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