Maple Leafs forward Nicholas Robertson suffers shoulder injury

Just after getting an important veteran defenseman back from injury, the Toronto Maple Leafs may have lost another player due to injury. The Maple Leafs have announced that forward Nicholas Robertson will not return to tonight’s contest against the Los Angeles Kings due to a shoulder injury. Robertson sustained the injury after taking a hit from Kings defenseman Michael Anderson. Anderson’s hit drove Robertson into the corner, and Robertson remained on the ice for some time before heading straight to the dressing room.

Robertson has dealt with significant injury troubles recently, injuries that limited him to just 38 games played last season. Robertson has five points in 14 games so far this season, and ideally his being taken out of this game would be more of a precautionary measure than anything else. But until we get more details on the injury, any speculation on a timeline is just that, speculation. At this point, all Toronto can do is hope that Robertson’s injury is less severe than it initially seemed to be.

Some other notes from across the hockey world:

• The Winnipeg Jets announced that forward Saku Maenalanen would not return to tonight’s contest against the St. Louis Blues. Maenalanen was driven into the boards taking a hit from Blues defenseman Niko Mikkola and immediately went to the locker room with a shoulder that appeared to be in discomfort. Maenalanen, 28, returned to the NHL with the Jets this season after a successful year in 2021-22 for Karpat in Liiga, and has six points in 24 games so far.
• The San Diego Gulls, the AHL affiliate of the Anaheim Ducks, announced that they have acquired forward David Cotton from the Coachella Valley Firebirds, the Seattle Kraken’s AHL affiliate, in exchange for future considerations. Cotton was signed by Coachella Valley in September, and heads to San Diego having played two games for the club. Cotton is a former captain of the Boston College Eagles who scored 21 points in his first 26 AHL games with the Chicago Wolves in 2020-21.