By their very nature, professional athletes will always lobby to get into games, even if it’s not in their best interest. And while we’re not trying to be paternal, it’s clear that the Toronto Maple Leafs ought to shut down Matthew Knies for the remainder of the 2025-26 campaign.

Knies has been playing through a knee injury for the vast majority of the campaign, an open secret among those who cover the team. The burgeoning power forward has been prone to large scoring droughts, which can largely be accounted for due to his lingering ailment. Knies admitted that he’s still playing through the injury, ahead of Friday’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes.

“It’s kind of an injury that I don’t think it could get much worse,” Knies said to David Alter of The Hockey News prior to Friday’s game. “So I don’t think that there’s any risk for me playing. It’s obviously not comfortable playing through it, but everyone’s playing through something, I feel like, at this time of year. So that’s not really an excuse. But, if it’s not going to get worse, then there’s no problem with me playing, then I’m going to play.”

Knies has recorded 18 goals and 57 points in 66 games this season (prior to Friday’s game) and in a vacuum, his production hasn’t been an issue. From the eye test and covering the team, Knies hasn’t been able to take over games with his unique combination of speed, skill, size and power to the same degree that he displayed in 2024-25. He’s taken on a larger share of the offensive responsibility upon signing a six-year extension, but the Maple Leafs aren’t winning during Knies’ minutes, sporting a -3 goal differential and 45 percent share of the expected goals. It’s not completely on Knies, as he’s often been glued to Auston Matthews, and his offence contributions have been tied to the captain’s production, but he’s also not generating offence well enough as an independent threat, either.

This argument perhaps buries the more obvious point: there’s nothing to play for, so why risk further aggravating the injury? Knies is 23 years old, and he’s the bridge between the team’s uncertain future and murky present, which will require some major pivots during the offseason. Alongside rookie Easton Cowan, he is one of two under-25 pillars of the team. Knies is simply too important for the Maple Leafs to risk further injury in some meaningless games. Although the Maple Leafs will certainly attempt to win every contest possible, there’s no point in subjecting Knies to further risk, especially when it’s the team’s short-term benefit to bottom out, in hopes of recouping their 2026 first-round pick from the Boston Bruins.

Matthews is already out for the season, having undergone surgery to repair a Grade 3 MCL tear. Chris Tanev will miss the remainder of the season as well. There’s ample opportunity for several Toronto Marlies call-ups to make their case for a roster spot heading into next fall. As for Knies, this notion won’t sit well with the hyper-competitive power forward, but it’s in everyone’s best interest that he sits out the final 12 games of the year. Time will only tell if the Leafs’ medical staff concurs.

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