Maple Leafs confirm the worst for Johnsson

Another blow for the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday as the team has just announced that forward Andreas Johnsson underwent successful knee surgery earlier today and is expected to miss six months.

Last Thursday, the Leafs’ forward came in heavy contact with his own teammate Kasperi Kapanen. Johnsson left the contest with a knee injury and did not return. After the loss, head coach Sheldon Keefe came straight and announced that his forward’s injury will not be short-term.

And boy was he right… 

With that information, and the fact that the Leafs are falling in the standings, it seems like the news will greatly impact the team’s decisions for the upcoming trade deadline.

Some fans believe the Leafs will hold up on trades and acquiring a top defenseman, while others think this is the right time to put Johnsson with Morgan Rielly and Cody Ceci on LTIR until the playoffs to a legitimate top-6 left winger, and a top-4 defenseman.

One thing seems sure: the Leafs might take Kapanen off the market with his injury. Especially now that Ilya Mikheyev’s not expected back until late-March.

A lot of balls to joggle for GM Kyle Dubas…