The word “lost” came up a lot during Toronto’s game with Phoenix last night. The Leafs lost 3-2 in a shootout to the Coyotes and have now lost four of their last five. The Leafs also lost both Mikhail Grabovski and Clarke MacArthur to injury during the game.
What’s ailing Grabovski is still unconfirmed, but this much we know: He’ll miss the next two weeks after colliding with Martin Hanzal and limping off with what appeared to be a lower-body injury. Grabovski had 5G-5A-10PTS in 18 games while averaging over 18 minutes a night.
As for MacArthur, the jury’s still out. Terry Koshan of the Toronto Sun reports he’ll see a doctor (MacArthur, not Koshan) for further diagnosis. It’s believed to be an upper-body injury, for whatever that’s worth. Koshan also noted that MacArthur won’t play tomorrow night in Nashville.
Speaking of the Nashville game, Leafs head coach Ron Wilson confirmed Ben Scrivens would get the start -- his fourth in a row. (That noise you heard was another bolt going through Jonas Gustavsson and into the bench.) All told, the Leafs will face the Predators without the services of Grabovski, MacArthur, James Reimer and Colby Armstrong.
Good news, though -- Tim Connolly has declared himself fit and will return to the lineup on Thursday. I would joke about how the Leafs are keeping a spot on IR open for him, but I’m not sure it’s a joke.