Breaking: NHL rules in the Lupul injury case

Toronto Maple Leafs forward Joffrey Lupul kicked up a dust cloud of controversy two weeks ago when, in a veiled Instagram post, he asserted that he never failed his physical examination and that the Leafs “cheated” to get his contract onto long-term injury reserve (LTIR).

The NHL took note and performed their own third-party examination of Lupul to determine whether or not the 34-year-old would be eligible to play the 2017-18 season. And now the results are in… Lupul has failed his physical again. 

Now that he has failed his second physical, Lupul and his $5.25 million annual salary can be placed on LTIR, providing the Leafs with significant cap relief. If Lupul were deemed fit to play then the Leafs would have been forced to make a trade or stash his salary in the AHL with the Toronto Marlies. As it stands, Lupul will continue to collect his paycheques and the Leafs will carry on without him in the lineup.