Due to a significant groin injury, veteran defenseman Chris Tanev has been limited to 11 games this season with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Again trying to rehabilitate the injury, THN’s Nick Barden reported that Tanev took to the ice on his own today, and the Maple Leafs will decide by the end of the weekend if he’s good to return to practice.
Still, there’s no guarantee Tanev will even return this season. After missing a month of action from November 1st to December 23rd, Tanev appeared in only three games before suffering a similar injury. He opted for rehab instead of surgery at the time, and it appears he’s trying to do the same thing this time around.
However, the door remains open on surgery, and it may be the most beneficial option. It would give Tanev ample time to recover and ramp up physical activity throughout the offseason to ensure he’ll be healthy for the 2026-27 campaign. Toronto could still return to the postseason conversation when they return from the Olympics, but they’ll have their work cut out for them in a hotly contested Atlantic Division.
Additional notes from this evening:
- The Colorado Avalanche have announced a new ECHL expansion franchise for the 2026-27 season. The New Mexico Goatheads will replace the Utah Grizzlies as Colorado’s ECHL affiliate next season, and the latter team will be moving to Trenton, NJ. It’ll be the newest ECHL affiliation with the Avalanche since the Colorado Eagles moved to the AHL in 2018.
- According to his Instagram account, defenseman prospect Jakub Fibigr has committed to Ohio State University for next season. The 19-year-old Czech was drafted by the Seattle Kraken in the seventh round of the 2024 NHL Draft. He’s scored nine goals and 33 points in 44 games split between the OHL’s Brampton Steelheads and Windsor Spitfires this season.