Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Jake McCabe is headed to injured reserve for an upper-body injury after sustaining a concerning injury on Sunday.
McCabe dropped the gloves with Philadelphia Flyers forward Garnet Hathaway in the first period of the Leafs' 3-2 victory and fell hard to the ice with Hathaway landing on top of him.
Maple Leafs D Jake McCabe has been placed on IR (retroactive to January 5).
D Marshall Rifai has been recalled from the Toronto Marlies (AHL).
It appeared that McCabe's head made contact with the ice. As he attempted to get on his knees, he fell backwards and needed help from fellow defenseman Morgan Rielly.
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McCabe was sidelined for five games last month after taking a puck to the head in the Maple Leafs' game against the Tampa Bay Lightning on November 30. He recorded one hit in 7:12 of ice time before leaving Sunday's game.
"I didn't like it. I don't like what I saw. He's sticking up for his teammate. We all really appreciate that. It's concerning for sure," head coach Craig Berube said in regards to McCabe challenging Hathaway after he made physical contact with Leafs rookie goaltender Dennis Hildeby.
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According to NHL insider Darren Dreger, it looks as though McCabe is going to be absent for an extended period.
"It looks like [McCabe will miss time]," Dreger said. "That was the expectation as of [Sunday] night. He had to go through protocol and it looked pretty obvious that it was a head-related injury. You can see that his head bounced off the ice."
It's unclear if it is a head injury as Dreger noted that McCabe was also kicked in the groin by Hathaway on his way down to the ice and that it might be "a few days" before any diagnosis is known.
"It is concerning. It's concerning for sure," Berube said. "Like I said, I don't like seeing it. It's a tough one."
With McCabe sidelined, Simon Benoit has stepped into the top four defensive pairings, playing alongside Chris Tanev.
"We might not get true details today," Dreger said. "If Craig Berube is available, chances are he's going to say that more testing is required or that [McCabe] is 'day-to-day' because that's all he knows in the moment."
McCabe came into the game with one goal and 10 assists, totaling 11 points in 35 games.
The Leafs will return to action on Tuesday night, facing the Flyers in Philadelphia.
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