Toronto Maple Leafs forward Ryan O’Reilly is expected to be sidelined four weeks after undergoing surgery to stabilize a fractured index finger on his left hand.
Coach Sheldon Keefe announced the timeline for recovery involving O’Reilly on Tuesday, one day after the latter was placed on long-term injured reserve.
“Used him in different spots and you can see the impact he can have on our team,” Keefe said on Monday. “When you get him, you get excited and you know what he can bring so to lose him, certainly, is tough and disappointing, but we’ve acquired him to be healthy and ready to go for the playoffs and that will be the case. So, to that end, you know, it’s not bad in terms of what the bigger picture is. And, with the nature of the injury, he won’t miss much time actually on the ice and skating.”
O’Reilly, 32, was injured in Saturday’s game against the Vancouver Canucks after he took an Auston Matthews’ shot off his hand.
O’Reilly recorded five points (three goals and two assists) in eight games since being acquired along with forward Noel Acciari in a three-team trade that also involved the Minnesota Wild. O’Reilly has 24 points (15 goals, nine assists) in 48 games this season with the St. Louis Blues and Maple Leafs.
O’Reilly was a Selke and Conn Smythe Trophy recipient during the Blues’ Stanley Cup winning season in 2018-19. He has 696 points (255 goals, 441 assists) in 986 career games with the Colorado Avalanche, Buffalo Sabres, Blues and Maple Leafs.
–Field Level Media