Leafs practice notes: Matthews, Knies reunited on top line, first power play unit, McMann day-to-day

Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews said he’s planning to return Saturday against the Tampa Bay Lightning, and he may be joined by teammate Matthew Knies.

Toronto’s superstar forward confirmed he’s intending to play Saturday, following Friday’s practice via David Alter of The Hockey News.

Matthews has missed Toronto’s last nine games due to an upper-body injury which has kept him out since a November 3 contest against the Minnesota Wild. The 27-year-old has been a regular participant in practice throughout the week and was placed on a line alongside Knies and William Nylander during Friday’s session.

Knies suffered an injury during a November 20 game against the Vegas Golden Knights where his head hit the ice, following a collision with Golden Knights defenceman Zach Whitecloud. The 22-year-old was wearing a blue regular practice uniform, graduating from the red non-contact jersey he was wearing earlier this week.

Matthews and Knies featured as part of an all-forward power play unit alongside Nylander, Mitch Marner and John Tavares. Alex Nylander, Nick Robertson, Nikita Grebenkin, Morgan Rielly and Oliver Ekman-Larsson took reps with the second unit.

Toronto continues to reshuffle its forward lines out of necessity, facing a wave of injuries throughout the lineup. Bobby McMann left Wednesday’s game against the Florida Panthers and did not return with a lower-body injury. McMann wasn’t at Friday’s practice and will miss a few games, head coach Craig Berube confirmed to reporters. Pontus Holmberg was placed alongside Marner and Tavares during Friday’s practice.

It’s unclear who will be the healthy scratches with Matthews and Knies returning to the lineup, but it appears that Alex Nylander may be benched Saturday, while Ryan Reaves continues to serve his five-game suspension. In any event, the Maple Leafs are surely welcoming the return of two of their best forwards.