Pretty well every NHL team has followed the trend of issuing vague, deliberately-unclear injury reports, keeping in line with the loose regulations the league mandates. The Toronto Maple Leafs, however, might have perfected the practice of muddled and often misleading information when it comes to the health of their players.
For the second time already this season, news about a Maple Leafs player has come to light that stands in stark contrast to what the organization had previously indicated to the media. Back in early November, head coach Craig Berube suggested that Auston Matthews, who had missed a few games with an upper-body injury, was progressing well and initially refused to rule him out for their Nov. 8 game against the Detroit Red Wings. Matthews would ultimately miss nine games and would even travel to Germany in order to address his still-undisclosed upper-body injury.
Fast forward to this week, and things are once again failing to add up when it comes to injury updates. On Friday, Berube offered some self-described “good news” on the status of netminder Anthony Stolarz, suggesting that the hugely successful offseason addition was day-to-day with a lower-body injury. On Tuesday, “day-to-day” suddenly became a minor knee surgery and a four-to six-week return timeline. It’s possible that the organization received new information in the interim, but they haven’t demonstrated a level of honesty or transparency that would merit the benefit of the doubt.
In all fairness, the Maple Leafs have been forthcoming about not being forthcoming. In the aftermath of the misdirection surrounding Matthews’ injury, general manager Brad Treliving addressed the club’s approach to sharing news regarding player injuries.
“I’m protective of our players,” said Treliving. “We want to share as much as we can, but anything that puts the player at jeopardy, I’m not going to do that.”
While the intent behind the approach is noble, it’s unclear how being misleading can protect players. Toronto could have merely announced Stolarz’s surgery without the conflicting messaging, which probably would have ultimately made the update less eventful than the raised eyebrows that came in response to the way the situation was handled. There may be a sense in the Maple Leafs front office that less is more when it comes to injury news and that the club doesn’t owe the media or fans medical information pertaining to its players, but these efforts to shroud everything in secrecy have a down considerable side.
Trust is Important
We have already reached a point where the next health update that Berube offers on one of his players will be met with skepticism and uncertainty, and that’s a problem. After all, how can trust be built when so much injury news — one of the foremost meaningful updates that a coach typically offers during an NHL season — must now be taken with a grain of salt?
Gambling — and the league’s partnerships with betting sites — is often cited as the primary driver of the need for accurate, detailed information (“Injury secrecy is an NHL tradition — and a dilemma for bookmakers”, The Washington Post, 05/09/2022). While that’s true, it’s also worth noting the role of accurate information related to player availability in shaping fans’ decisions over whether to invest in attending a game. How can you make an informed decision on whether to buy tickets if the health status of your favourite player is made murky?
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This distrust can even extend to the players in the locker room. While Maple Leafs players are assuredly getting better information about their teammates behind closed doors, it’s only logical for the team to wonder what else Berube isn’t entirely truthful about if he’s so willing to mislead outsiders. Even if this is simply a mandate from team management that is being followed, it is Berube who comes off as untrustworthy. Former head coach (and current New Jersey Devils bench boss) Sheldon Keefe was ostensibly operating under the same mandate and while he was far from an open book, his injury updates were never quite so off base.
When it comes to injury news, it’s true that the Maple Leafs don’t owe anything to the media or fans. Unlike the NBA and NFL, the NHL doesn’t require any detailed reporting regarding player injuries, a mild surprise given their partnerships with betting platforms like BetMGM and Caesars Sports Betting. And surely anyone in Toronto would agree that Treliving and Berube should focus their time and attention on the performance of the club rather than updating those outside the organization on every detail of their players’ progress.
The problem, however, is that having team-driven information prove to be so off the mark can serve to alienate the very forces the Maple Leafs rely upon to drive their business. While media will cover the club because it’s their job and fans will still continue to follow the team (they’ve endured plenty already), that comes with a sense of connection to those within the organization. Making those outsiders feel foolish and misled while fuelling a sense of disconnect and mistrust is not good for business. And just wait until Berube gets closer to playoff time.
