Keefe mourns the latest injury to Maple Leafs prospect Robertson:

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Nick Robertson’s bad luck with injuries doesn’t go away.

The Toronto Marlies winger – and one of the Maple Leafs’ top prospects – is expected to be out of action for a minimum of 10 weeks after sustaining an undisplaced fracture of his right fibula on Sunday against Manitoba.

Robertson fell awkwardly to the ice while fighting for the puck during the Marlies’ 5-0 loss to the Moose at the Coca-Cola Coliseum. The Marlies tweeted that Robertson will not require surgery.

Not only is the extended absence a blow to Robertson, it potentially takes a chunk of depth away from the Leafs. If Robertson had gotten off to a good start with the Marlies, he would have positioned himself to be called up by the Leafs in case of injuries with the NHL club.

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“I’m sorry for Nick,” Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said. “It’s bad luck for him. He’s coming off a good camp and I know he was excited to have a good season. I watched the first Marlies game and I thought it looked good.

“It is very unfortunate. A guy who works as hard as he does and is committed as he is, it’s hard to see that happen. But I also know that from how hard he works and the commitment he has to it, if someone is going to get over that and recover, he will. These things happen and you have to find your way through them. “

The setback for Robertson, 20, comes after he sustained multiple injuries during the shortened 2020-21 season, when he suffered a knee injury, dealt with a persistent problem in his groin and abdomen and suffered a concussion.

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As a result, Robertson was never fully on track. In six games with the Leafs, Robertson had one assist, and in 21 games with the Marlies, he had five goals and 11 assists.

In two games this season, Robertson, the Leafs’ 2019 second-round pick (53 overall), has two assists.

RETURN OF HUTCH

Keefe confirmed that goalie Michael Hutchinson, back with the Leafs following backup Petr Mrazek’s groin injury, will start on set in Toronto this week.

The Leafs are at home to face the San Jose Sharks on Friday before taking on the Penguins in Pittsburgh on Saturday to begin a three-game road trip that includes stops in Carolina and Chicago.

“Every time you get a chance to go up, it’s an unfortunate situation, Petr is hurt, it’s fun to be here, it’s fun to be with the guys,” Hutchinson said. “I’m excited to keep moving forward with the guys and just doing my part to help everyone improve and win as many games as possible.”

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Hutchinson, it turns out, has a connection to University of Toronto goalkeeper Alex Bishop, who signed a one-day amateur test contract Saturday to back Jack Campbell against Ottawa. The salary cap restrictions tied the Leafs’ hands for a day, and then Hutchinson was pulled from the Marlies on an emergency basis.

“We skated with the same goalkeeping coach (Jamie McGuire) who grew up in Toronto and I’ve skated with him before,” Hutchinson said, referring to Bishop. “Everyone’s goal is to be in the NHL, but it doesn’t happen to most people. It’s good for him to have a really great life experience with all the hard work he put into his own game. “

Hutchinson made sure to send Bishop, via McGuire, a congratulatory message.

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Campbell, one of the NHL’s busiest goalkeepers during the first week of the regular season, rested most of practice and left after the opening drills.

“It’s just managing your workload,” Keefe said. “It was going to be a tough day for the goalkeepers in terms of the number of shots and the type of shots that were going to arrive, so we didn’t think it was necessary for him to go through that. It is important to manage your goalkeepers. “

With Hutchinson at one end, the other net was occupied by former OHL goalkeeper Brendan Bonello.

LOOSE LEAVES

Through the NHL games Monday night, only Philipp Grubauer of the Seattle Kraken expansion had played more minutes than Campbell. However, 22 goalkeepers had allowed more goals than Campbell, who has stopped 82 of 86 shots. “He’s a great goalie, he’s a great competitor and he pushes himself to the limit every night,” Mitch Marner said of Campbell … How fast has Auston Matthews climbed on the Leafs franchise goal list? Matthews’ next goal will be his 200th, tying him with Charlie Conacher for 13th in Leafs history. As long as he can stay healthy, Matthews will have no trouble breaking into the Leafs’ top 10 this season. In 10th place is Ted Kennedy, who scored 230 goals in a Toronto uniform… In four games, John Tavares has won 57 of his 82 games (69.5%). David Kampf, continually praised by Keefe for his intelligence, has won 41 of 63 (65.1%).