Maple Leafs defenseman to undergo MRI after suffering lower-body injury

The Toronto Sun’s Terry Koshan shared that Toronto Maple Leafs defender Conor Timmins sustained a lower-body injury in the team’s preseason matchup against the Montreal Canadiens. The duration of Timmins’ injury should be clearer following MRI testing, although Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe already shared that “[Timmins] is going to miss some time, he is going to be out for a bit.”

This is an incredibly untimely injury for Timmins, who has been one of the brightest points of Toronto’s training camp. The 25-year-old defenseman has six points through three preseason games, leading the league by two points. This falls in line with the strong scoring Timmins exhibited in the NHL last season, netting two goals and 14 points through 25 games in the NHL. Previously the 32nd-overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, Timmins has yet to work his way into consistent NHL minutes, splitting time between the top league and the AHL. In fact, last season was his first time appearing in 10 or more NHL games since the 2020-21 season, when he appeared in 31 games with the Colorado Avalanche, recording seven points. Timmins was sent to the Arizona Coyotes following that season – a main part of the deal that sent Darcy Kuemper to Colorado. A little over a year later, Arizona sent Timmins to Toronto for Curtis Douglas. Now, the defender seems poised for an NHL opportunity; that is, if he can maintain his strong play after he returns from injury.

Other injury notes:

• Filip Chytil skated individually prior to the New York Rangers practice, indicating that he’s progressing in his return from an upper-body injury sustained earlier in the week. The injury was labeled as an unserious, day-to-day injury and Chytil’s return to the ice seems to further indicate that he won’t be out for long.
• Chicago Blackhawks forward Philipp Kurashev sustained a wrist injury that held him out of the team’s practices on Saturday. However, no further timetable was provided for the injury. The 23-year-old has become a consistent part of the Blackhawks lineup, appearing in 70 games with the club last season – his third year of 50 or more NHL games. The team will look for him to return to the lineup sooner rather than later.