Leafs’ Chris Tanev to return after 23-game absence

Some positive news for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

When speaking to the media on Tuesday, head coach Craig Berube stated that defenseman Chris Tanev will return to the lineup for that afternoon’s game against the Pittsburgh Penguins, as he has been activated from injured reserve.

It will be the first time in 23 games that the right-handed blueliner will dress for a game. Tanev last saw action on Nov. 1, when he suffered a scary injury against the Philadelphia Flyers. In the third period of that game, while trying to kill off a penalty, Tanev collided with Flyers forward Matvei Michkov near the Leafs’ blue line. Tanev lay on the ice and was quickly attended to by medical personnel. He was taken off the ice on a stretcher as a result. The 35-year-old gave a thumbs-up to the crowd as they exited.

Tanev was taken to a nearby hospital for precautionary measures, but was discharged the following day.

The injury came in Tanev’s first game back from a concussion, which caused him to miss four games. In the 27 games he has missed thus far, the Leafs have gone 11-12-4, including losing both games in their back-to-back this past weekend, falling to the Nashville Predators, 5-3, on Saturday before getting waxed 5-1 by the Dallas Stars on Sunday.

In eight games thus far, the Toronto native has posted two assists, picking up a +5 rating while averaging 17:20 of ice time per game. He’s in the second season of a six-year contract that he signed in July 2024. The deal carries an AAV of $4.5 million through the 2029-30 campaign.

The Leafs (15-15-5) come into Tuesday’s slate with the worst record in the Eastern Conference, just a few points ahead of the Chicago Blackhawks for last place in the NHL. Toronto is six points back of a Wild Card spot.