Veteran defenseman nearing return for Maple Leafs

Maple Leafs defenseman Mark Giordano will not return to action in Wednesday’s game against the Senators, per The Athletic’s Jonas Siegel. Giordano, who has been out with a finger fracture for nearly a month, practiced with the team Wednesday morning and is close to a return but is not cleared to suit up just yet.

The NHL’s oldest active skater remains on long-term injured reserve and will miss his 12th straight game. He is eligible to return at any time, satisfying the 10 games and 28 days missed requirement for an LTIR placement. The Maple Leafs will not need to make a corresponding transaction to activate him with enough LTIR relief from John Klingberg’s, Matt Murray’s and Jake Muzzin’s contracts to accommodate his $800K cap hit.

Even when he’s cleared to play, the 40-year-old’s role in the lineup is cloudier than when he left it. No one is budging out of the Maple Leafs’ top four, which consists of T.J. Brodie, Timothy Liljegren, Jake McCabe, and Morgan Rielly, and their third pairing of AHL call-ups Simon Benoit and William Lagesson has been one of the best shutdown pairings in the league in limited minutes. Among pairings with at least 70 minutes together, only the Kraken’s Brian Dumoulin and Ryker Evans have allowed fewer expected goals against per 60 minutes, per MoneyPuck.

In 20 games this season, Giordano has one goal, four assists, five points and a -1 rating while averaging 17:52 per game. His even-strength Corsi share of 50.5% is his worst since the 2015-16 season.

Other items of interest from the Atlantic Division today:

• Sabres forward Zemgus Girgensons is close to a return but won’t suit up Wednesday against the Bruins, head coach Don Granato said (via WGR Sports Radio 550’s Paul Hamilton). The 6-foot-2 Latvian will miss his 16th game with a lower-body injury sustained November 24 against the Penguins. His pending IR activation is creating some uncertainty for the Sabres, who will need to demote or trade a player to create space on the roster. Before getting injured, the longest-tenured Sabre had two goals in 20 games while playing a fourth-line role.
• Also remaining out of the lineup tonight is Panthers enforcer Jonah Gadjovich, via Florida Hockey Now’s Colby Guy. It’s unclear whether he’s a healthy scratch or if he’s still battling the illness that kept him out of the lineup for four games before the holiday break. The 25-year-old has one assist and 43 penalty minutes in nine contests this season, averaging only 6:42 per game.