{"id":551708,"date":"2026-03-21T18:23:19","date_gmt":"2026-03-21T18:23:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/551708\/"},"modified":"2026-03-21T18:23:19","modified_gmt":"2026-03-21T18:23:19","slug":"why-the-maple-leafs-should-shut-down-matthew-knies-for-remainder-of-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/551708\/","title":{"rendered":"Why the Maple Leafs should shut down Matthew Knies for remainder of season"},"content":{"rendered":"

By their very nature, professional athletes will always lobby to get into games, even if it\u2019s not in their best interest. And while we\u2019re not trying to be paternal, it\u2019s clear that the Toronto Maple Leafs<\/a> ought to shut down Matthew Knies<\/a> for the remainder of the 2025-26 campaign.<\/p>\n

Knies has been playing through a knee injury for the vast majority of the campaign, an open secret among those who cover the team. The burgeoning power forward has been prone to large scoring droughts, which can largely be accounted for due to his lingering ailment. Knies admitted that he\u2019s still playing through the injury, ahead of Friday\u2019s game against the Carolina Hurricanes.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s kind of an injury that I don\u2019t think it could get much worse,\u201d Knies said to David Alter of The Hockey News<\/a> prior to Friday\u2019s game. \u201cSo I don\u2019t think that there\u2019s any risk for me playing. It\u2019s obviously not comfortable playing through it, but everyone\u2019s playing through something, I feel like, at this time of year. So that\u2019s not really an excuse. But, if it\u2019s not going to get worse, then there\u2019s no problem with me playing, then I\u2019m going to play.\u201dKnies has recorded 18 goals and 57 points in 66 games this season (prior to Friday\u2019s game) and in a vacuum, his production hasn\u2019t been an issue. From the eye test and covering the team, Knies hasn\u2019t been able to take over games<\/a> with his unique combination of speed, skill, size and power to the same degree that he displayed in 2024-25. He\u2019s taken on a larger share of the offensive responsibility upon signing a six-year extension, but the Maple Leafs aren\u2019t winning during Knies\u2019 minutes, sporting a -3 goal differential and 45 percent share of the expected goals. It\u2019s not completely on Knies, as he\u2019s often been glued to Auston Matthews, and his offence contributions have been tied to the captain\u2019s production, but he\u2019s also not generating offence well enough as an independent threat, either.This argument perhaps buries the more obvious point: there\u2019s nothing to play for, so why risk further aggravating the injury? Knies is 23 years old, and he\u2019s the bridge between the team\u2019s uncertain future and murky present, which will require some major pivots during the offseason. Alongside rookie Easton Cowan<\/a>, he is one of two under-25 pillars of the team. Knies is simply too important for the Maple Leafs to risk further injury in some meaningless games. Although the Maple Leafs will certainly attempt to win every contest possible, there\u2019s no point in subjecting Knies to further risk, especially when it\u2019s the team\u2019s short-term benefit to bottom out, in hopes of recouping their 2026 first-round pick from the Boston Bruins.Matthews is already out for the season, having undergone surgery to repair a Grade 3 MCL tear<\/a>. Chris Tanev will miss the remainder of the season as well. There\u2019s ample opportunity for several Toronto Marlies call-ups to make their case for a roster spot heading into next fall. As for Knies, this notion won\u2019t sit well with the hyper-competitive power forward, but it\u2019s in everyone\u2019s best interest that he sits out the final 12 games of the year. Time will only tell if the Leafs\u2019 medical staff concurs.PRESENTED BY TABLE FARE + SOCIAL\"\"TABLE Fare + Social is a vibrant food hall in the heart of Toronto\u2019s financial district, offering a unique dining and social experience just steps from transit and the arena\u2014perfect for pregame meals before tip-off. Open weekdays from 11am to 10pm, TABLE serves up morning treats, creative eats, and lively after-work events. With a private terrace overlooking Toronto\u2019s elevated park, guests enjoy stunning views alongside year-round programming that includes food tastings, cooking classes, live music, and pop-up events designed to spark connection and creativity.
\nFollow along @Tablefood hall or\u00a0tablefoodhall.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By their very nature, professional athletes will always lobby to get into games, even if it\u2019s not in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":551709,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194291],"tags":[49,48,3302],"class_list":["post-551708","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-toronto","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-toronto"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/551708","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=551708"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/551708\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/551709"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=551708"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=551708"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=551708"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}