Maple Leafs' Ryan O’Reilly expected back before playoffs

The Toronto Maple Leafs spent big at the NHL trade deadline to try and improve their team before the playoffs but ended up losing Ryan O’Reilly after just a few games when he was accidentally hit with an Auston Matthews shot. Tuesday, general manager Kyle Dubas told reporters, including Chris Johnston of NorthStar Bets, that O’Reilly should be able to return ahead of the playoffs.

After breaking a finger, the veteran forward was moved to long-term injured reserve on March 6, meaning he can return at the end of the month. The team has eight games in April to get him back up to speed, should he be ready to go for April 1.

It seemed like a perfect fit for the Maple Leafs and O’Reilly through his first few games with the team. After scoring just 19 points in 40 games with St. Louis, he had five in his three with Toronto, including an impressive hat trick performance against the Buffalo Sabres. However, things had gone quiet before the injury, as O’Reilly was scoreless in his other five games with the Maple Leafs.

While he won’t be asked to carry the load offensively, his addition was meant to give the team another high-impact forward for the playoffs. Winning faceoffs and playing strong defense are important, but it’s not exactly what the team was hoping for when it used several high draft picks to acquire him from the St. Louis Blues.

Luckily for Toronto, the other player it received in that deal—Noel Acciari—has also been making an impact, including a pair of goals against the Edmonton Oilers a few days ago. The bang-and-crash forward has already recorded 40 hits in his 11 games as a Maple Leaf, taking him over 200 on the season.