Maple Leafs place Jake McCabe on injured reserve; Max Pacioretty off LTIR
On Saturday, the Toronto Maple Leafs announced they have placed defenseman Jake McCabe on injured reserve with an upper-body injury. Also, the team has activated forward Max Pacioretty from long-term injured reserve.
Maple Leafs D Jake McCabe has been placed on IR (upper body) retroactive to November 30.
F Max Pacioretty have been activated from LTIR.
Pacioretty is expected to be in the lineup against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday night.
McCabe suffered his injury near the halfway mark of last Saturday’s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The 31-year-old was on the wrong end of a shot from Lightning blueliner Nick Perbix as McCabe was hit in the side of his head underneath the helmet. He ended up going to the locker room and didn’t return. The Maple Leafs went on to win the game, 5-3.
With his placement on IR retroactive to Nov. 30, McCabe is eligible to return to the lineup next Tuesday against the New Jersey Devils.
Through 23 games in his second full season with the Leafs, McCabe has registered five assists, with a plus/minus of +11 while averaging 21:20 of ice time.
Pacioretty has been out of the lineup since Nov. 8, when a shot from Montreal Canadiens defenseman Mike Matheson hit him in the leg. He was later placed on IR with a lower-body injury before being moved to LTIR when the extent of the injury was worse than expected. Pacioretty, who’s in his first season in Toronto, already missed three games with a different lower-body injury before his most recent ailment.
In 13 appearances with the Leafs, the 36-year-old has scored two goals and four assists for six points, with a +4 rating while averaging 12:11 of ice time. Pacioretty earned a one-year contract after coming to Toronto on a PTO before training camp.
The Maple Leafs (16-8-2) are tied for first in the Atlantic Division with the Florida Panthers.