Overview
- Veteran defender Chris Tanev will meet with a surgeon this week, and multiple reports say surgery would keep him out until late April or early May.
- Head coach Craig Berube said Tanev will miss significant time with a groin injury that is unrelated to his earlier issue and confirmed he is being evaluated for possible surgery.
- Toronto is weighing LTIR routes under updated rules, with up to about $3.8 million in regular LTIR relief versus season‑ending LTIR that would bar a playoff return but grant full cap relief on his hit.
- Tanev’s setback compounds a heavy injury list: Jake McCabe is expected to miss about a week, Brandon Carlo is nearing a return, and Anthony Stolarz, William Nylander, and Dakota Joshua remain out to varying degrees.
- The blue line has struggled, allowing 3.34 goals per game (27th in the NHL), and Tanev has appeared in only 11 games after sustaining the groin injury on Dec. 28 against Detroit.