Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Jake Muzzin will miss the rest of the 2022-23 regular season and the playoffs, the team announced Wednesday.
The decision made by the Toronto medical staff came after a consultation with specialists who reviewed the progress Muzzin had made in his recovery from a cervical spine injury.
The club said it would update his status next in September at training camp.
The Leafs placed Muzzin on long-term injured reserve after just four games this season and said his condition would be reassessed in February. He finishes the season with one assist.
Muzzin turned 34 on Tuesday.
He sustained a neck injury in a game Oct. 17 against the Coyotes when he collided with Arizona forward Clayton Keller in the second period. He has not played since.
A fifth-round draft pick in 2007, Muzzin has totaled 294 points (69 goals, 225 assists) in 683 games with the Los Angeles Kings (2010-19) and Maple Leafs. Toronto acquired him on Jan. 28, 2019, for a first-round draft pick that year, defenseman Sean Durzi and forward Carl Grundstrom.
Next season will be the final one of a four-year, $22.5 million contract extension he signed in February 2020.
Toronto (35-15-8, 78 points) is in second place in the Atlantic Division.
–Field Level Media