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Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Mark Giordano day-to-day with a lower-body injury

Originally posted on Daily Faceoff | By Tyler Kuehl | Last updated 2/10/24

The rough season for the oldest active player in the NHL continues.

On Saturday, Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe revealed that defenseman Mark Giordano is day-to-day with a lower-body injury.

Keefe added that Giordano could be out longer than just day-to-day.

The Leafs’ bench boss also mentioned after the team’s morning skate that Conor Timmins is out with an illness.

Giordano suffered the injury during Toronto’s 5-4 win over the Dallas Stars on Wednesday night. He was noticeably not on the ice on Saturday, and was absent during the team’s outdoor practice at Nathan Phillips Square on Friday.

According to TSN’s Claire Hanna, William Lagesson was skating with Giordano’s defense partner, Timothy Liljegren on the team’s third pair in the lead-up to their Saturday night clash with the Ottawa Senators.

Mark Giordano not on the ice for #Leafs morning skate. William Lagesson paired with Timothy Liljegren.
— Claire Hanna (@clahanna) February 10, 2024

It has not been the most fruitful 2023-24 season for Giordano. The 40-year-old has just one goal and five assists in 34 games. The former Norris Trophy winner missed 12 games in late November and early December after blocking a shot against the Florida Panthers on Nov. 28.

Giordano’s minutes had been going down since returning from that injury. While he playing close to 20 minutes on a consistent basis through November, the Toronto native has played over 19 minutes just twice since the beginning of January, averaging around 15 minutes over the last seven games.

Giordano is the final year of a two-year contract with an AAV of $800,000 that he signed with the Leafs in May 2022. In 133 games with his hometown team, Giordano has totaled seven goals and 35 assists, coming out with a +44 plus/minus. He also notched four assists in the team’s last two playoff runs.

In 1,136 NHL games, Giordano has scored 156 goals and 418 assists, including posting 11 points in 41 postseason games.

The Maple Leafs (26-15-8) are third in the Atlantic Division, one point ahead of the fourth-place Tampa Bay Lightning, and 13 points behind the Boston Bruins for first.

This article first appeared on Daily Faceoff and was syndicated with permission.

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