Toronto Maple Leafs’ Bobby McMann ejected from game vs. Ducks for boarding

Toronto Maple Leafs center Bobby McMann was ejected from Wednesday night’s game against the Anaheim Ducks due to a boarding penalty.

The incident occurred early in the second period of the game when McMann, 27, hit Ducks defenseman Pavel Mintyukov from behind into the boards. Ilya Lyubushkin then stepped in and fought McMann to stand up for his fellow blueliner, resulting in McMann receiving 20 minutes worth of penalties, including a five-minute major for boarding, another five for fighting, and a 10-minute game misconduct. Mintyukov was not injured on the play and was able to play the rest of the game.

McMann has had a solid season for the Maple Leafs on the fourth line, with a goal and three assists for four points in 15 games. That would total to 21 points over a full 82-game season, although he won’t reach that total due to playing in the AHL to start the season and also being a healthy scratch for the team on several occasions.

McMann was an undrafted free agent signing by the Maple Leafs, first joining the organization on a two-year AHL contract with the Toronto Marlies in 2020, and then signing a two-year NHL contract with the Leafs in 2022 after a couple successful seasons in the ECHL and AHL. He’s currently in the final year of that deal with a $762,500 cap hit, and is set to become an unrestricted free agent in the 2024 offseason.

With McMann out of the lineup for the rest of the game, his linemates in David Kampf and Noah Gregor saw some ice time with Pontus Holmberg and Calle Jarnkrok, although the lines became scrambled as a whole in order to adjust for McMann’s departure.

With the Leafs going on to win Wednesday’s game against the Ducks 2-1 in overtime, they’ll look to sweep their California road trip when they face the San Jose Sharks on Saturday. They’re currently third in the Atlantic Division with a 19-10-7 record.