Leafs' Auston Matthews appears doubtful for Game 7

The Toronto Maple Leafs haven't announced forward Auston Matthews' status for Game 7 of the NHL Eastern Conference first-round playoff series against the Boston Bruins, but it appears he won't play.

The game is set for Saturday night in Boston.

The Athletic reported Saturday that Matthews participated in his team's morning skate but only spent about 15 minutes on the ice and "still looked limited physically."

Matthews played through an undisclosed illness in Game 3 and attempted to do the same in Game 4 but did not take the ice in the third period of Toronto's 3-1 loss. He reportedly suffered an undisclosed injury in that game.

While coach Sheldon Keefe said Matthews was "progressing," he sounded doubtful that his star would be available for Toronto's third straight elimination game.

"As of right now, we're proceeding as we've been," Keefe said.

The Maple Leafs stayed in the series Thursday when William Nylander scored both goals in Toronto's 2-1 victory in Game 6 on home ice.

Matthews had a goal and two assists in Toronto's 3-2 win in Game 2, accounting for all three of his points in the series.

Matthews, 26, led the NHL with a career-high 69 goals and tallied 107 points in the 2023-24 season. The 2021-22 Hart Trophy winner has 649 points (368 goals, 281 assists) in 562 games since being drafted No. 1 overall by the Maple Leafs in 2016.