Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman Marshall Rifai will undergo wrist surgery after suffering an injury during Thursday’s preseason game against the Montreal Canadiens, head coach Craig Berube confirmed via TSN’s Mark Masters.

Rifai left the game during the first period and was subsequently ruled out during the second period. During the first period, Rifai was checked by Canadiens forward Joshua Roy, and did not play for the rest of the game. Rifai recorded one hit and one shot on goal in 4:35 of playing time.

Rifai is an emerging defenceman within the Maple Leafs’ system and was lauded for his work ethic by Auston Matthews at last year’s training camp. He signed a two-year extension in September 2024, which is enacted for the 2025-26 season. The 28-year-old spent the entire 2024-25 campaign with the AHL’s Toronto Marlies, where he recorded three goals and 13 points in 63 games. Rifai was called up to the Maple Leafs several times last season, but did not suit up for a game.

“He had some games up with us last year and he worked so hard,” Matthews said of Rifai during last year’s training camp. “You can just see he wants it and continues to progress, and I’ve been pretty impressed with him and the way he plays hard on both sides of the puck.”

It’s certainly a really tough break for Rifai, whose patience and increased confidence with the puck was beginning to show during the early stages of this year’s training camp. He has always been a physical player with a playing style that ought to endear himself to the Leafs’ staff, and he fought Ottawa Senators forward Zack MacEwen in the preseason opener. And while Rifai wasn’t in serious consideration to unseat any of the Maple Leafs’ incumbent defencemen in the rotation, he was widely considered a top option to be called up, if the team runs into injury trouble.