Craig Berube says Matthew Knies missed Blues match due to ‘lingering problem’

Head coach Craig Berube said Knies, 23, had been fighting something and wasn’t sure of his status heading into the morning skate.

“This morning I wasn’t sure if he would be ready to play, so I told Sammy [Blais] to be on standby,” Berube told reporters after the Maple Leafs’ 3-2 win [Knies] came in tonight and couldn’t go…he had a lingering problem for a while and it got worse today.

Despite leaving Knies, Auston Matthews and five other players behind, the Maple Leafs managed to take a step in the right direction with a win over the Blues. The eventual game-winning play in overtime was started by John Tavares, who pinned the puck against the boards and pulled all three Blues players toward him. The distraction allowed him to kick the puck free to Morgan Rielly, who set up William Nylander for what could be a goal of the year candidate.

Berube, who has long appreciated hard work on the board and players who do the little things to create play, was unsurprisingly delighted with Tavares’ effort for that goal after the match.

“I told the team because that’s what he’s all about,” Berube told reporters. “That play there symbolizes John Tavares. 3-on-1, keeps the puck alive, Morgan comes in quickly and makes a play, and Willy does what he does.”

The Leafs probably slept well Tuesday night knowing their losing streak was over, but they’ll need a lot more than one win to get back to a place they’re used to. That said, Berube spoke about his team’s ability to overcome the injury bug and take the two points with hard work.

“It’s always nice to end the skid,” Berube said. “But when I look at the team and everything that’s going on with injuries and everything, it could have been easy for our guys to say, ‘Well, we’re all messed up, we don’t have anyone,’ but I didn’t understand that at all tonight. And our guys battled really hard tonight. I’m proud of the way they competed and stayed together for the game.”

The Maple Leafs return to action on Thursday when they host the Columbus Blue Jackets.

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