Maple Leafs place David Kampf on injured reserve with lower-body injury

On Tuesday, the Toronto Maple Leafs announced that forward David Kampf has been placed on injured reserve with a lower-body injury.

In response, the team has called up forward Fraser Minten from their American Hockey League affiliate, the Toronto Marlies.

Kampf’s injury is retroactive to Nov. 16, when the Maple Leafs beat the Edmonton Oilers 4-3 in overtime. The 29-year-old played 14:22 of ice time, a little above his season average. The team hasn’t disclosed when or where he was injured.

Per IR rules, Kampf is eligible to return on Sunday when Toronto hosts the Utah Hockey Club for the first time.

The Czechia centerman has been a little slow out of the gate scoring-wise this season. Having played 18 of the Leafs’ 19 games so far, Kampf has registered just three assists, a little behind the pace that led to him achieving 19 points last year, and far off the scoring rate that led him to posting 26 and 27 points in his first two campaigns in Toronto.

In 495 NHL appearances, Kampf has scored 43 goals and 90 assists, including seven points in 34 Stanley Cup Playoff games.

This will be Minten’s second stint with the big club in his career. The 20-year-old rookie was good enough to scratch his name onto the NHL roster out of training camp in 2023-24 but only played four games before being sent down to the Marlies. During his brief time with the Leafs, Minten averaged 11:26 of ice time with three shots on goal to his name.

The Vancouver native has found a nice rhythm since being reassigned to the AHL. Minten registered points in each of his first four games with the Marlies, having potted two goals and four points across five contests.

The Maple Leafs (11-6-2) sit second in the Atlantic Division, one point back of the first-place Florida Panthers. They are scheduled to host the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday night.