Liljegren in for the Leafs, another D injured; Good news on Max Domi

Sheldon Keefe has confirmed following Saturday's morning skate that Timothy Liljegren will make his much-anticipated return tonight. He also provided updates on Max Domi, Joel Edmundson and Ryan Reaves.

Following Maple Leafs practice on Friday, head coach Sheldon Keefe suggested that we could very well see Timothy Liljegren return to the lineup tonight against the Detroit Red Wings. What we didn't know at the time was that Joel Edmundson had suffered another injury and would not play on Saturday. While Keefe has confirmed that Liljegren will draw back in, he also revealed on Saturday that Joel Edmundson will be coming out of the lineup due to another unfortunate and unexpected injury.

Edmundson had just returned from an 8-game absence earlier this week, but after taking a hard shot off the top of the foot on Thursday night against New Jersey that really seemed to bother him, he just didn't seem quite right. Of course, we don't know if he suffered the injury on that shot block or if the injury happened during another point in the game, but Keefe stated that the team simply wants to be cautious with one of their top deadline acquisitions to ensure that he's good to go in time for the playoffs.

Edmundson himself had stated this week that his previous injury was minor and that if the Leafs were in the playoffs, he would have been able to play through the pain. The same appears to be true for this current, unspecified injury.


In addition to the Liljegren and Edmundson news, Sheldon Keefe also told the media on Saturday that both Max Domi and Ryan Reaves will re-enter the lineup tonight. Reaves had been a healthy scratch for a couple of games, presumably to let his hands heal after a pair of fights against Tanner Jeannot and Michael Pezzetta over the last week and a half.

Meanwhile, Domi did not attend practice on Friday after being banged up in Thursday's loss to the Devils. Originally, Keefe told the media that it was possible that Domi would be ready to play against the Red Wings tonight, but many were of the mindset that the Leafs may, instead, opt to play things on the safe side and sit him to ensure that he's healthy and ready to go for the playoffs next weekend. Obviously, Domi's presence in the lineup tonight means that whatever he was dealing with was minor and will not hamper him in any way tonight or moving forward.