Leafs expected to make Klingberg a healthy scratch after slow start to year

The Toronto Maple Leafs seem to have finally given up on defenceman John Klingberg, at least for the time being.

According to TSN’s Mark Masters, the struggling Klingberg is set to be a healthy scratch when the Leafs host the Calgary Flames on Friday night.

With Jake McCabe set to return to Toronto’s lineup, Klingberg skated on the fourth pair at practice alongside Conor Timmins, who has yet to play this season after suffering a lower-body injury in the preseason.

Klingberg signed in Toronto on a one-year contract this offseason worth $4.15 million, and has put up five assists in 13 games.

Defensively, however, it’s been an adventure for the 31-year-old Swede, who has been on the ice for 14 goals against at 5v5 this season compared to just eight for Toronto, as per Natural Stat Trick.

Klingberg had a particularly rough outing on Wednesday night, being on the ice for four goals against in a 6-3 loss to the Ottawa Senators.

“We sit here and celebrate guys who score big numbers and score a ton. We don’t talk enough about what we give up. That is the reality. We have to prioritize keeping the puck out of our net,” Toronto head coach Sheldon Keefe told reporters postgame.

On Klingberg specifically, Keefe suggested the Leafs need to “protect him better.”

However, Keefe seemed to have some confidence that Toronto could turn their start around.

Toronto has just one win in their last six games, and their 47 goals allowed this season rank 29th in the league. Despite their recent slide, the team still sits in a playoff position, holding onto the second Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference with a record of 6-5-2.

“We didn’t play a terrible game. We have played worse. We have given up twice as much in some other games than we gave up tonight. The game is right there for us. We just made big mistakes at really important times,” Keefe added.

Puck drop for Friday night’s contest against Calgary is set for 7 pm ET.