Toronto Maple Leafs’ Ryan O’Reilly placed on LTIR, John Tavares to miss game

The Toronto Maple Leafs will be without two key players for the time being.

Coach Sheldon Keefe confirmed that forward Ryan O’Reilly has been placed on injured reserve due to a finger injury.

The club didn’t give a timeline for his return, but LTIR is for players who are expected to miss a minimum of 10 games and 24 days.

O’Reilly played just 11:11 against Vancouver before blocking a shot in the second period on Saturday. The 32-year-old has three goals and five points in eight games for the Leafs, with all of his points coming during his first three games.

O’Reilly had just 12 goals and 19 points in 40 games prior to the trade, putting him on pace for just over 30 points this year. It’s been a tough year for a forward that has scored at least 50 points in every full season since 2011-12, his third year in the NHL.

The Maple Leafs acquired the power forward on Feb. 18 from the St. Louis Blues in a three-team trade. O’Reilly previously missed nearly two months with a broken foot and returned just a week before getting moved to the Leafs.

The Leafs also confirmed that John Tavares won’t play against the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday. Keefe said Tavares had not been feeling himself and wore a grey jersey in practice that’s usually reserved for scratched players. Tavares, 32, has 62 points in 63 games and was on pace to hit 80 points for the first time since 2018-19 prior to the illness. No timeline for his return is known, either.

Earlier in the day, Toronto recalled forward Pontus Holmberg and Alex Steeves from the Toronto Marlies, and re-assigned goaltender Joseph Woll back to the AHL. Both forwards have spent time with the Leafs this year, with Holmberg recording five goals and 13 points in 36 games as a rookie.

The Leafs currently sit second behind Boston for the Atlantic Division lead. Toronto is 6-4-0 over the past 10 games, but are coming off of a tough 4-1 loss to the Canucks on Saturday.